News Corporation $NWSA Shares Sold by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its holdings in News Corporation by 7.8%, owning approximately 1,077,957 shares after selling 90,833 shares.
• Analysts have varying ratings for News Corporation, with one maintaining a Strong Buy rating, while others have adjusted their ratings, including lowering it from "buy" to "hold."
• News Corporation announced a half-year dividend of $0.10 per share, which will be paid on October 8th, representing a dividend yield of 70.0%.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets trimmed its position in News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,077,957 shares of the company's stock after selling 90,833 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.19% of News worth $29,342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of News by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,764,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,409,030,000 after purchasing an additional 812,180 shares during the last quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of News by 2.2% during the first quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 27,189,590 shares of the company's stock worth $740,101,000 after acquiring an additional 572,331 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in shares of News by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 13,846,298 shares of the company's stock worth $376,896,000 after buying an additional 2,183,613 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of News by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,391,564 shares of the company's stock worth $146,758,000 after buying an additional 80,282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Contour Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of News by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. Contour Asset Management LLC now owns 5,382,702 shares of the company's stock worth $148,240,000 after acquiring an additional 936,702 shares in the last quarter. 66.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

News Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NWSA traded up $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $29.44. 3,321,312 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,093,407. News Corporation has a 12 month low of $23.38 and a 12 month high of $30.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.15 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.46 and a 200-day moving average of $28.14.

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

News Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a half year 25 dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 70.0%. News's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of News in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of News from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Macquarie reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $32.70 price target on shares of News in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of News from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.