Insider Selling: Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) Insider Sells $219,917.61 in Stock

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) insider Gary Weitman sold 1,241 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.21, for a total transaction of $219,917.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $704,409.75. The trade was a 23.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of NXST opened at $177.85 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $156.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $163.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.43 billion, a PE ratio of 10.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.04 and a 52-week high of $191.86.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $7.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.22 by ($1.66). Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 26.03%. The business had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 21.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.18%. This is an increase from Nexstar Media Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.69. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NXST. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Nexstar Media Group during the third quarter valued at about $44,000. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $210.29.

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group, Inc operates as a diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across the television and digital platforms in the United States. It owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to various markets; and offers television programming services.