National Research (NASDAQ:NRC) Reaches New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• National Research shares reached a 12-month high, trading as high as $27.60. Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $27.
• The company beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $0.21 versus $0.18 estimated and revenue of $38.4 million versus $35.8 million expected.
• National Research announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, equivalent to a 2.4% annualized yield; its payout ratio is 228.57%.

National Research Corporation (NASDAQ:NRC - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday. The company traded as high as $27.60 and last traded at $27.2950, with a volume of 25,882 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NRC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citizens Jmp boosted their price target on shares of National Research from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of National Research from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of National Research from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of National Research to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $27.00.

National Research Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.13, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $618.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.12 and a beta of 0.22. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.38.

National Research (NASDAQ:NRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $38.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $35.80 million. National Research had a net margin of 4.48% and a return on equity of 313.25%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that National Research Corporation will post 0.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Research Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 29th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. National Research's dividend payout ratio is 228.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National Research

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Simplex Trading LLC increased its position in shares of National Research by 556.4% during the third quarter. Simplex Trading LLC now owns 3,282 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 2,782 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in National Research by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 112,468 shares of the company's stock worth $1,910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,323 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in National Research by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 250,707 shares of the company's stock worth $4,257,000 after purchasing an additional 9,730 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in National Research during the 1st quarter worth $180,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in National Research during the 1st quarter worth about $226,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.26% of the company's stock.

National Research Company Profile

National Research Corporation, which operates as NRC Health, provides experience-management and consumer-insights services to organizations in the health care industry. Its research and technology help clients understand how patients, health care consumers and employees perceive their services. The company's offerings include patient and consumer surveys, employee-engagement research, reputation measurement, analytics and related advisory services. Hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations use these tools to identify opportunities to improve service and strengthen relationships with the communities they serve.

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