Insider Selling: Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Insider Sells 395 Shares of Stock

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) insider Andrew Alford sold 395 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.32, for a total value of $73,991.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,302,912.08. This represents a 3.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

NXST stock traded down $2.91 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $185.12. 324,271 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 384,860. The company has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $200.38 and its 200 day moving average is $207.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.00 and a 12-month high of $254.30.

Nexstar Media Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 159.66%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 63.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 488,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,557,000 after buying an additional 188,695 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 43.1% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 279,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,236,000 after buying an additional 84,163 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 19.9% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,507,000 after buying an additional 4,616 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Nexstar Media Group by 2,272.2% during the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 49,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,780,000 after acquiring an additional 47,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 2,573.4% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 140,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,494,000 after acquiring an additional 134,871 shares in the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on NXST. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $252.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.67.

Nexstar Media Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Nexstar Media Group this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple Nexstar insiders sold shares at $187.32, but the filings say the transactions were to satisfy tax withholding obligations related to equity vesting. SEC filing for Michael Biard
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional insider sales were disclosed by Lee Ann Gliha, Andrew Alford, Sean Compton, Dana Zimmer, Brett Jenkins, Lindsey Knapp, Dan Lanzano, Rachel Morgan, Blake Russell, and Gary Weitman, adding to the near-term overhang on sentiment. SEC filing for Lee Ann Gliha
• Negative Sentiment: The cluster of insider sales may cause investors to question whether management sees limited near-term upside, even though the trades appear to be routine and not necessarily a negative fundamental signal. SEC filing for Gary Weitman

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group, Inc is a diversified American media company engaged primarily in the ownership, operation and strategic affiliation of local television stations, digital platforms and cable networks. The company provides a range of broadcast content, including local news, sports coverage, entertainment programming and syndicated shows, reaching audiences in more than 100 television markets across the United States.

Founded in 1996 by entrepreneur Perry Sook and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar has built its presence through organic growth and a series of high-profile acquisitions.