Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Boosts Stake in National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI - Free Report) by 126.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 273,711 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 152,777 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.29% of National CineMedia worth $1,817,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 107,069 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 728,915 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,840,000 after purchasing an additional 7,218 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in National CineMedia by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 40,931 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 8,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in National CineMedia by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 65,424 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $434,000 after acquiring an additional 9,147 shares in the last quarter. 69.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on NCMI shares. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $7.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. William Blair reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, B. Riley lowered National CineMedia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $6.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.20.

National CineMedia Stock Up 1.5%

NCMI stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $5.14. The company had a trading volume of 105,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 632,232. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46. The company has a market capitalization of $484.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.58 and a beta of 2.12. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.36. National CineMedia, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.12 and a fifty-two week high of $7.60.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The business services provider reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.20) by ($0.04). National CineMedia had a negative net margin of 9.49% and a negative return on equity of 2.61%. The company had revenue of $34.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.13 million. Analysts forecast that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National CineMedia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. National CineMedia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -63.16%.

Insider Transactions at National CineMedia

In other news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 300,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $5.12 per share, for a total transaction of $1,536,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 10,250,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at $52,483,691.52. This represents a 3.01% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

About National CineMedia

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.