Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Sinclair has a consensus “Hold” rating among six brokerages, split evenly between buy, hold, and sell recommendations. Analysts’ average 12-month price target is $19.40.
• Sinclair reported a quarterly loss of $1.06 per share, missing estimates by $0.82, although revenue rose 7.1% year over year to $840 million.
• The company declared a $0.25 quarterly dividend, implying a 7.0% annualized yield, but its payout ratio is elevated at 133.33%.

Shares of Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the six brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $19.40.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SBGI shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sinclair from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Sinclair from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Sinclair from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Guggenheim cut their price objective on Sinclair from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Sinclair from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th.

Sinclair Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBGI opened at $14.35 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.28, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $14.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 19.13 and a beta of 1.06. Sinclair has a 52 week low of $12.46 and a 52 week high of $17.88.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $840.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.99 million. Sinclair had a net margin of 1.60% and a negative return on equity of 16.09%. Sinclair's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.91) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Sinclair will post 1.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sinclair Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. Sinclair's payout ratio is currently 133.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David B. Gibber sold 29,246 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.74, for a total transaction of $401,840.04. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 184,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,531,512.56. This trade represents a 13.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Daniel C. Keith sold 17,000 shares of Sinclair stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $255,340.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,122 shares of the company's stock, valued at $377,332.44. The trade was a 40.36% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 42.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sinclair

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Madison Avenue Partners LP acquired a new stake in Sinclair during the 4th quarter worth approximately $13,918,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Sinclair by 1,929.5% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 709,265 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,107,000 after buying an additional 674,318 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Sinclair by 143.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 906,872 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,875,000 after buying an additional 534,573 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Sinclair by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,946,274 shares of the company's stock worth $29,778,000 after buying an additional 373,566 shares during the period. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in Sinclair by 890.3% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 306,637 shares of the company's stock worth $4,630,000 after buying an additional 275,674 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 41.71% of the company's stock.

About Sinclair

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc NASDAQ: SBGI is a media and entertainment company headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Founded in 1971 as a single UHF television station operator, Sinclair has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest owners of local television stations in the United States. Over its history, the company has pursued a diversified portfolio that includes both traditional broadcast assets and newer digital platforms.

At its core, Sinclair operates over 190 television stations affiliated with the major national broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW and MyNetworkTV.

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