Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) COO Sells $185,259.48 in Stock

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) COO Michael Biard sold 989 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.32, for a total transaction of $185,259.48. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 15,224 shares in the company, valued at $2,851,759.68. This represents a 6.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Down 4.0%

NXST stock opened at $178.43 on Friday. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.00 and a twelve month high of $254.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53. The company has a market capitalization of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.29, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $197.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.72.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is 159.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 63.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 488,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,557,000 after acquiring an additional 188,695 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 43.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 279,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,236,000 after acquiring an additional 84,163 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,507,000 after acquiring an additional 4,616 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 2,272.2% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 49,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,780,000 after acquiring an additional 47,375 shares in 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NXST shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Benchmark cut their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $259.67.

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.