Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI - Free Report) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,714,036 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 64,683 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 5.59% of Sinclair worth $59,945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sinclair by 26.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Sinclair by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 7,480 shares of the company's stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Sinclair in the 4th quarter worth about $123,000. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Sinclair during the 4th quarter valued at about $262,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sinclair during the 4th quarter valued at about $279,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.71% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Sinclair

In other Sinclair news, Chairman David D. Smith purchased 30,296 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.09 per share, for a total transaction of $426,870.64. Following the completion of the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 728,986 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,271,412.74. This trade represents a 4.34 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 458,530 shares of company stock valued at $6,636,392. 46.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on SBGI shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sinclair from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sinclair from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Sinclair from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Sinclair in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sinclair currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.30.

Sinclair Stock Up 0.0 %

Sinclair stock traded up $0.00 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $13.99. The company had a trading volume of 40,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 340,814. Sinclair, Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.13 and a 12 month high of $18.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.73. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $14.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.84. The company has a market capitalization of $930.17 million, a PE ratio of -4.23 and a beta of 1.29.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.62. The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Sinclair had a negative net margin of 6.14% and a positive return on equity of 63.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sinclair, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sinclair Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.15%. Sinclair's payout ratio is currently 21.46%.

About Sinclair

Sinclair, Inc, a media company, provides content on local television stations and digital platforms in the United States. It operates through two segments, Local Media and Tennis. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, original networks, and content; provides free-over-the-air programming and live local sporting events on its stations; distributes its content to multi-channel video programming distributors in exchange for contractual fees; and produces local and original news programs.