Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Cuts Holdings in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. $NXST

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners Inc. reduced its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 44.8%, bringing its holdings down to 6,049 shares, valued at approximately $1,084,000.
• Nexstar recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.86 per share, equating to a 3.6% dividend yield, with an upcoming payment date of August 29th.
• Analysts have set new price targets for Nexstar Media Group, with Wells Fargo raising its target from $206 to $250 and maintaining an "overweight" rating on the stock.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lessened its position in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST - Free Report) by 44.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,049 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,905 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Nexstar Media Group were worth $1,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Transactions at Nexstar Media Group

In other news, insider Andrew Alford sold 757 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total transaction of $125,094.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,528 shares in the company, valued at $1,739,752. The trade was a 6.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Ann Gliha sold 757 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total value of $125,094.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,119,496.50. This represents a 5.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,209 shares of company stock valued at $860,787. Company insiders own 6.70% of the company's stock.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ NXST opened at $202.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.15 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $141.66 and a 12-month high of $223.36. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $190.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $173.65. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.95 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 28.40%. The business's revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.54 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 21.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Nexstar Media Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NXST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Benchmark raised their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $206.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Nexstar Media Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $225.00.

Nexstar Media Group Company 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.