News Corporation $NWS Holdings Decreased by Perpetual Ltd

Key Points

• Perpetual Ltd cut its News Corp stake by 76% in the third quarter, selling 1.91 million shares and retaining 602,948 shares worth approximately $19.1 million.
• News Corp is continuing its US$1 billion share-repurchase program, which could reduce shares outstanding and support per-share earnings and the stock price.
• News reported quarterly EPS of $0.35, exceeding the $0.24 consensus estimate, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating; shares opened at $32.38 and were up 1.2%.

Perpetual Ltd lessened its position in shares of News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWS - Free Report) by 76.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 602,948 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,909,613 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd owned 0.11% of News worth $19,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in News by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 8,193 shares of the company's stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 881 shares during the period. CX Institutional raised its position in shares of News by 47.9% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 9,863 shares of the company's stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 3,194 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of News in the 2nd quarter valued at about $65,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in shares of News in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,449,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of News by 79.4% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,717 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.63% of the company's stock.

News News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting News this week:

• Positive Sentiment: News Corp confirmed continued progress and provided updated details on its US$1 billion share buyback program. Repurchases can support the stock by reducing the number of shares outstanding, potentially increasing per-share earnings and signaling management’s view that the shares are attractively valued. News Corp Details Progress of US$1 Billion Share Repurchase Program
• Positive Sentiment: Additional ASX notifications indicate that the repurchase program remains active, reinforcing the prospect of ongoing shareholder returns and potential support for NWS shares. News Corp Updates US$1 Billion Share Repurchase Program Details

News Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:NWS opened at $32.38 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.44 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.05. News Corporation has a 12 month low of $25.49 and a 12 month high of $35.76.

News (NASDAQ:NWS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.11. News had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 7.09%. The firm had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. Analysts expect that News Corporation will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

News Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 60.0%. News's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of News in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research lowered News from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About News

News Corp NASDAQ: NWS is a global diversified media and information services company headquartered in New York. Its businesses produce and distribute news, financial information, books, digital content and real estate listings across multiple platforms and geographies.

The company's principal operations include Dow Jones, which provides business news, financial data and professional information services through publications such as The Wall Street Journal and Barron's; News Corp Australia and News UK, which operate newspapers, digital news properties and other media brands; and HarperCollins Publishers, a global publisher of books in a broad range of categories.

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