Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 10,544 Shares of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. $NXST

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 0.8%, acquiring 10,544 additional shares for a total of 1,341,899 shares, valued at approximately $240 million.
• Research firms, including Wells Fargo and Guggenheim, have increased their price targets for Nexstar Media Group's stock, with consensus rating now at "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $225.00.
• Nexstar recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.86, which represents a 3.7% annual yield, with a payout ratio of 38.63%.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,341,899 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,544 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 4.40% of Nexstar Media Group worth $240,481,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 830.3% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 307 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 2,293.8% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 383 shares of the company's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Nexstar Media Group by 62.3% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 401 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 2,126.3% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 423 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 186.7% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 453 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NXST. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $206.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised Nexstar Media Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $225.00.

Insider Activity

In other Nexstar Media Group news, EVP Blake Russell sold 507 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total transaction of $83,781.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,102,496.50. This trade represents a 2.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Rachel Morgan sold 329 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total transaction of $54,367.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,122 shares in the company, valued at $350,660.50. This trade represents a 13.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,021 shares of company stock valued at $2,885,352 in the last three months. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:NXST traded down $5.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $202.48. 769,768 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 405,544. The company has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.05. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $141.66 and a 1 year high of $223.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $184.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.11. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 28.40%. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.54 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 21.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Nexstar Media Group's dividend payout ratio is 38.63%.

Nexstar Media Group Profile

Nexstar Media Group, Inc operates as a diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across the television and digital platforms in the United States. It owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to various markets; and offers television programming services.