Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Issues Earnings Results

Key Points

• Nexstar Media Group reported quarterly earnings of $3.06 per share, exceeding expectations while experiencing a 3.2% decline in revenue year-over-year, totaling $1.23 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.86, reflecting a 4.0% yield and a dividend payout ratio of 37.69%.
• Analysts maintain a Moderate Buy rating for Nexstar, with average price targets ranging from $200.00 to $215.00 according to recent reports.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.95 by $0.11, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.21 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 29.21% and a net margin of 12.21%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.54 earnings per share.

Nexstar Media Group Trading Down 1.3%

NASDAQ NXST opened at $184.52 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $178.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.33. The stock has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.35, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.05. Nexstar Media Group has a twelve month low of $141.66 and a twelve month high of $194.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.74.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Nexstar Media Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.69%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nexstar Media Group news, EVP Rachel Morgan sold 329 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total transaction of $54,367.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,122 shares of the company's stock, valued at $350,660.50. The trade was a 13.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brett Jenkins sold 610 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.25, for a total transaction of $100,802.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,233,044. This represents a 2.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,474 shares of company stock valued at $3,666,988 over the last quarter. 6.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $499,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 1st quarter valued at $654,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 49.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,870 shares of the company's stock worth $2,844,000 after acquiring an additional 5,251 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 132,809 shares of the company's stock worth $23,802,000 after acquiring an additional 16,637 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 571.4% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 72,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,020,000 after purchasing an additional 61,830 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Benchmark cut their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $216.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $205.71.

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group, Inc operates as a diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across the television and digital platforms in the United States. It owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to various markets; and offers television programming services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.