Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 1,182,858 Shares of News Corporation $NWSA

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. significantly increased its stake in News Corporation by 1,338.0%, acquiring a total of 1,271,263 shares valued at approximately $37.78 million.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its price target for News from $38.00 to $40.00, while the average rating remains strong with one analyst at Strong Buy and others recommending Buy or Hold.
• News Corporation recently announced a dividend of $0.10 per share, with a yield of 70.0%, payable on October 8th.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) by 1,338.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,271,263 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,182,858 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.22% of News worth $37,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Asset Value Investors Ltd bought a new position in News during the fourth quarter valued at about $122,391,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in News in the first quarter valued at approximately $85,213,000. 59 North Capital Management LP grew its position in News by 24.4% during the first quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP now owns 11,147,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,439,000 after acquiring an additional 2,185,542 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox grew its position in News by 18.7% during the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 13,846,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $376,896,000 after acquiring an additional 2,183,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in News by 34.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,450,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,133,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,004 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.97% of the company's stock.

News Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NWSA traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $30.81. 3,333,563 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,045,867. The company's 50 day moving average price is $29.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.26. The firm has a market cap of $17.41 billion, a PE ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.72. News Corporation has a 52 week low of $23.38 and a 52 week high of $30.88.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19. News had a return on equity of 5.66% and a net margin of 13.21%.The company had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.17 EPS. The firm's revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that News Corporation will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

News Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a half year 25 dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a yield of 70.0%. News's payout ratio is currently 9.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NWSA. Wall Street Zen cut shares of News from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on News from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $32.70 price target on shares of News in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, News currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $38.62.

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.