Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Sinclair, Inc. has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold” from six research firms, with an average 12-month target price of $19.20.
• The company posted a stronger-than-expected quarter, reporting EPS of $0.28 versus estimates for a loss and revenue of $807 million, up 4% year over year.
• Sinclair also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, implying an annualized yield of 7.2%, though its payout ratio is high at 111.11%.

Shares of Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the six research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $19.20.

Several research analysts have recently commented on SBGI shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Sinclair from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Sinclair from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Sinclair from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sinclair from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $17.00 target price on Sinclair in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th.

Insider Transactions at Sinclair

In other news, COO Robert Weisbord sold 3,672 shares of Sinclair stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.97, for a total value of $51,297.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 280,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,923,516.41. The trade was a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel C. Keith sold 22,613 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.10, for a total value of $296,230.30. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $327,853.70. This represents a 47.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 55,672 shares of company stock worth $758,498 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 41.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sinclair

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sinclair by 142.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,815 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sinclair in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of Sinclair by 175.6% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sinclair in the third quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Sinclair during the second quarter valued at $54,000. 41.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sinclair Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of SBGI opened at $13.86 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $14.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40 and a beta of 1.09. Sinclair has a 1-year low of $11.89 and a 1-year high of $17.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.10.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.68) by $0.96. The business had revenue of $807.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $792.63 million. Sinclair had a negative return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 2.00%.The firm's revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($2.30) EPS. Analysts expect that Sinclair will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Sinclair Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 26th. Sinclair's dividend payout ratio is presently 111.11%.

About Sinclair

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc NASDAQ: SBGI is a media and entertainment company headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Founded in 1971 as a single UHF television station operator, Sinclair has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest owners of local television stations in the United States. Over its history, the company has pursued a diversified portfolio that includes both traditional broadcast assets and newer digital platforms.

At its core, Sinclair operates over 190 television stations affiliated with the major national broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW and MyNetworkTV.

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