Royal Bank of Canada Has $9.42 Million Stake in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. $NXST

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada cut its Nexstar Media Group stake by 33.1% in the first quarter, selling 25,805 shares and retaining 52,082 shares valued at approximately $9.42 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 95.3% of NXST.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with six Buy ratings and two Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $259, despite some recent target reductions.
• Nexstar reported quarterly revenue of $1.99 billion, up 62.2% year over year, but EPS of $3.61 missed estimates by $2.37. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.86 per share, implying a 3.8% annualized yield.

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its stake in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST - Free Report) by 33.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,082 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,805 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.17% of Nexstar Media Group worth $9,418,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sentinel Dome Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,315,000. CPC Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 114.3% during the first quarter. CPC Advisors LLC now owns 26,651 shares of the company's stock worth $4,819,000 after buying an additional 14,217 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,443 shares of the company's stock worth $157,114,000 after buying an additional 13,084 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 3,648.3% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 64,995 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,197,000 after acquiring an additional 63,261 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 2,573.4% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 140,112 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,494,000 after acquiring an additional 134,871 shares during the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NXST shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Nexstar Media Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $253.00 to $249.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $259.00.

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

Shares of NXST opened at $193.78 on Monday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $179.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $200.77. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.47 and a 12 month high of $254.30. The company has a market capitalization of $5.92 billion, a PE ratio of 37.19, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $3.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.98 by ($2.37). The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 3.20% and a return on equity of 24.26%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 62.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.06 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 37.46 EPS for the current year.

Nexstar Media Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Nexstar Media Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 142.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nexstar Media Group

In other Nexstar Media Group news, CEO Perry A. Sook acquired 12,235 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $162.26 per share, with a total value of $1,985,251.10. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 899,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at $145,878,879.44. This trade represents a 1.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Dana Zimmer sold 915 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.42, for a total value of $161,424.30. Following the sale, the insider owned 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,012,297.96. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 22,813 shares of company stock valued at $4,174,731 over the last three months. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

Nexstar Media Group, Inc is a diversified American media company engaged primarily in the ownership, operation and strategic affiliation of local television stations, digital platforms and cable networks. The company provides a range of broadcast content, including local news, sports coverage, entertainment programming and syndicated shows, reaching audiences in more than 100 television markets across the United States.

Founded in 1996 by entrepreneur Perry Sook and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar has built its presence through organic growth and a series of high-profile acquisitions.

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