National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $5.71 and last traded at $5.73, with a volume of 1244487 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $5.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on NCMI. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $7.00 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $7.50 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, William Blair reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $7.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $7.70.

National CineMedia Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $5.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.49. The company has a market cap of $540.21 million, a P/E ratio of -22.70 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.46.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.61% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. The business had revenue of $86.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.77 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National CineMedia Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a -- dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 24th were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia's payout ratio is currently -52.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 103,685 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.18 per share, with a total value of $537,088.30. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 10,310,433 shares in the company, valued at $53,408,042.94. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCMI. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of National CineMedia by 502.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,081 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 4,237 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in National CineMedia in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of National CineMedia in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in National CineMedia by 66.9% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,873 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 5,961 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.49% of the company's stock.

About National CineMedia

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.