News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate News Corp a “Moderate Buy”: Five of six covering firms recommend buying the stock, with one hold rating and an average 12-month price target of $38.50 versus its recent $30.18 price.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: News reported $0.35 in earnings per share and $2.34 billion in revenue, surpassing analyst estimates, while revenue increased 10.8% year over year.
• Institutional ownership remains high: Hedge funds have increased or initiated positions, and institutional investors collectively own 66.97% of News Corp’s shares.

News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $38.50.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NWSA. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of News in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of News from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Zacks Research downgraded News from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised News from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On News

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of News by 282.7% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,032 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,501 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its position in News by 96.2% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,188 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in News during the fourth quarter worth about $80,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in News by 150.5% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,475 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 2,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Havemeyer Place LP bought a new stake in shares of News in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $94,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.97% of the company's stock.

News Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NWSA opened at $30.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.51. News has a one year low of $22.20 and a one year high of $31.66. The business's 50-day moving average price is $29.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.81. The company has a market capitalization of $16.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.30 and a beta of 0.91.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. News had a return on equity of 7.09% and a net margin of 6.35%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.19 EPS. Analysts anticipate that News will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

News Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a yield of 68.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 9th. News's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.42%.

News Company Profile

News Corp is a global media and information-services company headquartered in New York. The company owns and operates businesses in news, publishing, digital real estate services and subscription-based information products, serving consumers, businesses and professional audiences across multiple markets.

Its portfolio includes Dow Jones, which provides business news, financial information and research through publications and services such as The Wall Street Journal and Barron's; News UK, publisher of The Times, The Sunday Times and The Sun; and News Corp Australia, which operates newspapers and digital media brands.

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