E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• E.W. Scripps has been downgraded from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating a negative outlook on the stock.
• Wells Fargo has reduced its price target for the stock from $4.00 to $3.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating.
• The company reported a loss of ($0.12) EPS for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations, and had revenue that fell short of forecasts.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report issued on Sunday.

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of E.W. Scripps from $4.00 to $3.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, E.W. Scripps has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5.50.

E.W. Scripps Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of SSP stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3.00. 282,044 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 963,688. E.W. Scripps has a 1-year low of $1.36 and a 1-year high of $4.17. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $3.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.55 million, a PE ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 1.05.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.08). E.W. Scripps had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 17.68%. The firm had revenue of $540.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $544.17 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that E.W. Scripps will post 1.07 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of E.W. Scripps

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SSP. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 182,344 shares of the company's stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 4,342 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 111.8% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 8,931 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 4,715 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 28.9% during the 2nd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 21,121 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 4,730 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 50.8% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,268 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 5,819 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 36,592 shares of the company's stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 7,418 shares during the period. 67.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About E.W. Scripps

The E.W. Scripps Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media enterprise through a portfolio of local television stations, national news, and entertainment networks in the United States. It operates through Local Media, Scripps Networks, and Other segments. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, which produce news, information, sports, and entertainment content, as well as its related digital operations; runs network, syndicated, and original programming, and local sporting events; and provides core and political advertising services.