Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Key Points

• Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) has been downgraded from a "hold" to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating a negative outlook from equities researchers.
• Wells Fargo raised Gray Media's price objective from $4.00 to $4.50, while Benchmark cut their target from $8.00 to $7.00, reflecting mixed sentiments among analysts.
• In recent earnings, Gray Media reported a significant loss of ($0.71) EPS, missing estimates, while revenue totaled $772 million, suggesting challenges in maintaining profitability despite meeting revenue expectations.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on GTN. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Gray Media from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Benchmark lowered their price target on Gray Media from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.88.

Gray Media Trading Up 21.9%

Shares of NYSE GTN traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $5.03. 3,851,736 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,495,299. The company's 50-day moving average is $4.58 and its 200-day moving average is $4.15. Gray Media has a 52-week low of $2.91 and a 52-week high of $6.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $511.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.20.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.42) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.19). Gray Media had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 5.64%. The company had revenue of $772.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $765.16 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.09 EPS. Gray Media's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Gray Media will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jeffrey R. Gignac purchased 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $3.68 per share, for a total transaction of $46,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 644,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,372,124.32. The trade was a 1.98% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 15.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Gray Media in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Gray Media during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Gray Media in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Gray Media in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gray Media by 157.6% during the 1st quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,752 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 5,355 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.64% of the company's stock.

About Gray Media

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.