Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 89,967 Shares of The New York Times Company $NYT

Key Points

• Franklin Resources trimmed its New York Times position by 4% in the fourth quarter, selling 89,967 shares and leaving it with 2.17 million shares valued at about $150.4 million.
• Insider selling has also been active, with EVP William Bardeen and EVP Jacqueline M. Welch both selling shares over the past few months; company insiders sold 17,121 shares total in the last 90 days.
• New York Times reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average price target of $81.67.

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its stake in shares of The New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,166,364 shares of the company's stock after selling 89,967 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 1.33% of New York Times worth $150,389,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in New York Times in the first quarter valued at approximately $442,000. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in New York Times by 52.2% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,640 shares of the company's stock valued at $577,000 after acquiring an additional 3,990 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in New York Times by 690.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 846 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in New York Times in the second quarter worth $306,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in New York Times by 70.2% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 55,423 shares of the company's stock worth $3,103,000 after purchasing an additional 22,853 shares during the period. 95.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP William Bardeen sold 4,121 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.85, for a total transaction of $320,819.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,560 shares in the company, valued at $1,133,496. This trade represents a 22.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jacqueline M. Welch sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.14, for a total transaction of $296,560.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,944.22. The trade was a 14.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 17,121 shares of company stock worth $1,310,920 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

New York Times Stock Performance

NYT opened at $73.03 on Thursday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $78.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.81. The firm has a market cap of $11.82 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.95. The New York Times Company has a twelve month low of $51.03 and a twelve month high of $87.10.

New York Times (NYSE:NYT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.12. New York Times had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 22.02%. The business had revenue of $712.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $699.93 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.41 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that The New York Times Company will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New York Times News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting New York Times this week:

• Positive Sentiment: High-traffic election results pages in Nevada, South Carolina, Maine, and North Dakota may boost audience engagement and subscriptions as readers follow primary races closely. Nevada Secretary of State Primary Election Results
• Positive Sentiment: Live coverage of inflation and the broader economic squeeze could draw strong readership, especially from business-focused audiences. Live Updates: Inflation Jumps as Iran War Intensifies Price Squeeze
• Neutral Sentiment: Several political and world-news stories, including ActBlue’s congressional testimony and Middle East coverage, are likely to support newsroom traffic but do not directly change the company’s financial outlook. ActBlue C.E.O. to Invoke Fifth Amendment in Testimony to Congress
• Neutral Sentiment: Sports and culture pieces, including NBA Finals and entertainment reviews, add breadth to site traffic but are not likely to materially move the stock on their own. Hurricanes even Stanley Cup Final with Game 4 win over Golden Knights: Live updates and reaction
• Negative Sentiment: There is no obvious company-specific catalyst in the latest batch of articles, which may leave NYT shares vulnerable to broader market weakness and profit-taking after recent gains.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of New York Times from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of New York Times in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Argus upgraded shares of New York Times to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of New York Times from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $90.00 target price on shares of New York Times in a report on Thursday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.67.

About New York Times

The New York Times Company is a publicly traded media organization best known for publishing The New York Times newspaper and operating the NYTimes.com digital platform. The company produces daily print and digital journalism covering national and international news, opinion pieces, feature stories, and multimedia content. Alongside its flagship newspaper, the firm offers a range of subscription-based services, including Times Cooking, NYT Games, podcasts and newsletters, designed to engage a broad audience of readers and advertisers.

Founded in 1851 by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones, The New York Times has built a reputation for in-depth reporting and investigative journalism.

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