Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) Trading 8.5% Higher - Time to Buy?

Gray Media Inc. (NYSE:GTN - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 8.5% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $5.13 and last traded at $5.13. 1,748,145 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 21% from the average session volume of 1,449,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GTN. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Gray Media from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Gray Media from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 29th. Finally, Benchmark dropped their target price on Gray Media from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.17.

Gray Media Stock Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $4.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48. The stock has a market cap of $571.16 million, a P/E ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.19.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.26. The business had revenue of $782.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $772.71 million. Gray Media had a net margin of 7.72% and a return on equity of 12.75%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Gray Media Inc. will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gray Media Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.69%. Gray Media's payout ratio is 13.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Jeffrey R. Gignac acquired 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 purchase, the chief financial officer owned 644,599 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,372,124.32. The trade was a 1.98% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 15.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Gray Media

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Gray Media in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Gray Media by 157.6% in the first 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. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Gray Media by 638.5% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 9,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 8,313 shares in the last quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Gray Media during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Gray Media during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors 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.