Plato Investment Management Ltd Makes New Investment in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. $NXST

Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 6,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Nexstar Media Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. WPG Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the third quarter worth $59,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the second quarter worth $54,000. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nexstar Media Group Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ NXST opened at $187.37 on Thursday. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.47 and a 12 month high of $254.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $199.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.09. The company has a market capitalization of $5.77 billion, a PE ratio of 35.96 and a beta of 0.91.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $3.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.98 by ($2.37). The company had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 24.02% and a net margin of 3.20%.Nexstar Media Group’s quarterly revenue was up 62.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.06 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 32.88 EPS for the current year.

Nexstar Media Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 142.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NXST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen cut Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $253.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $290.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $259.00.

Insider Activity

In other Nexstar Media Group news, COO Michael Biard sold 1,227 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.21, for a total value of $213,755.67. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 17,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,979,862.05. This represents a 6.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Dana Zimmer sold 4,008 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.46, for a total transaction of $751,339.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 1,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $335,928.32. This trade represents a 69.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,584 shares of company stock valued at $3,899,531. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nexstar Media Group Profile

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.