News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA) Shares Purchased by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stake in News Corporation by 57.1%, acquiring an additional 199,999 shares to hold a total of 550,000 shares, valued at nearly $15 million.
• News Corporation reported $0.17 earnings per share in its recent quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $0.19, despite achieving $2.01 billion in revenue.
• Recent research analyst ratings for News Corporation include a price target reduction by Morgan Stanley from $38.00 to $37.00 while Guggenheim maintains a $45.00 price target with a "buy" rating.

Alberta Investment Management Corp lifted its holdings in News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) by 57.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 550,000 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 199,999 shares during the quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp owned 0.10% of News worth $14,971,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Value Investors Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of News in the 4th quarter worth $122,391,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in News by 291.2% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,941,467 shares of the company's stock worth $136,088,000 after acquiring an additional 3,678,215 shares in the last quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP raised its stake in News by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 26,617,259 shares of the company's stock worth $733,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,812,080 shares during the last quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of News by 40.2% in the fourth quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP now owns 8,962,112 shares of the company's stock worth $246,817,000 after acquiring an additional 2,569,343 shares during the period. Finally, Ion Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in News in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,102,000. 66.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NWSA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of News from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of News from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of News in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, News presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $39.20.

News Price Performance

News stock traded down $0.23 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $29.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,872,101 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,411,190. News Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $23.38 and a fifty-two week high of $30.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.68. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $28.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.47 billion, a PE ratio of 33.83 and a beta of 1.23.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $2.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2 billion. News had a net margin of 5.18% and a return on equity of 5.64%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that News Corporation will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

About News

News Corporation, a media and information services company, creates and distributes authoritative and engaging content, and other products and services for consumers and businesses worldwide. It operates through six segments: Digital Real Estate Services, Subscription Video Services, Dow Jones, Book Publishing, News Media, and Other.