Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE:GTN) Shares Acquired by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE:GTN - Free Report) by 2,611.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 290,721 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 279,999 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.29% of Gray Television worth $915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in Gray Television during the 4th quarter worth $425,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gray Television by 925.7% in the 4th quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 169,670 shares of the company's stock valued at $534,000 after buying an additional 153,128 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gray Television in the 4th quarter valued at about $324,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Gray Television during the fourth quarter worth about $2,170,000. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Gray Television during the fourth quarter worth approximately $584,000. 78.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gray Television Price Performance

NYSE GTN traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $3.92. The stock had a trading volume of 1,927,372 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,809. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.85. The company has a market cap of $398.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.15. Gray Television, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2.91 and a 52-week high of $6.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76.

Gray Television (NYSE:GTN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.26. Gray Television had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 5.69%. The business had revenue of $782.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $772.71 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. The business's revenue was down 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Gray Television, Inc. will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gray Television Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.16%. Gray Television's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.85%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard Lee Boger sold 16,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.85, for a total transaction of $61,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 55,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,085.95. This represents a 22.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 15.22% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on GTN shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Gray Television from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on Gray Television from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Gray Television from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Benchmark dropped their price target on shares of Gray Television from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $6.17.

Gray Television Company Profile

Gray Television, Inc, a television broadcasting company, owns and/or operates television stations and digital assets in the United States. It also broadcasts secondary digital channels affiliated to ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX, as well as various other networks and program services, including CW Plus Network, MY Network, the MeTV Network, Circle, Telemundo, THE365, and Outlaw; and local news/weather channels in various markets.