Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Invests $365,000 in News Corporation $NWSA

Key Points

• Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in News Corporation during the 1st quarter, purchasing 13,418 shares valued at approximately $365,000.
• Several institutional investors significantly boosted their positions in News Corporation, with hedge funds and institutions owning 66.97% of the stock.
• News Corporation announced a $0.10 dividend to be paid on October 8th, representing a yield of 70.0% and a payout ratio of 9.62%.

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 13,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $365,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in News by 79.1% in the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 335,264 shares of the company's stock worth $9,126,000 after buying an additional 148,081 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in News by 48.6% in the first quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 337,779 shares of the company's stock worth $9,194,000 after buying an additional 110,472 shares in the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP raised its stake in News by 188.9% in the first quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 79,092 shares of the company's stock worth $2,153,000 after buying an additional 51,714 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in News by 39.4% in the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 26,881 shares of the company's stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 7,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP raised its stake in News by 18.4% in the first quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 324,220 shares of the company's stock worth $8,825,000 after buying an additional 50,449 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.97% of the company's stock.

News Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NWSA traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $29.23. The stock had a trading volume of 4,751,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,604,052. News Corporation has a twelve month low of $23.38 and a twelve month high of $30.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 1.84. The firm has a market cap of $16.51 billion, a PE ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.17.

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, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.19. News had a net margin of 13.21% and a return on equity of 5.66%. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that News Corporation will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

News Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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