StockNews.com Downgrades Lee Enterprises (NYSE:LEE) to Hold

Lee Enterprises (NYSE:LEE) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Lee Enterprises Trading Up 5.1 %

LEE stock traded up $0.87 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.04. The stock had a trading volume of 20,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,584. The firm has a market cap of $110.82 million, a PE ratio of -8.98 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.34, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Lee Enterprises has a 12-month low of $7.56 and a 12-month high of $19.63. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $10.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.12.

Lee Enterprises (NYSE:LEE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($1.41). The firm had revenue of $150.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $165.48 million. Lee Enterprises had a negative return on equity of 112.98% and a negative net margin of 2.88%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lee Enterprises will post -2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lee Enterprises

In other Lee Enterprises news, major shareholder Raghav Nath Bahl sold 71,000 shares of Lee Enterprises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $1,065,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,205 shares in the company, valued at $453,075. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 11.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lee Enterprises

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Lee Enterprises stock. Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE) by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 123,441 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,900 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 2.01% of Lee Enterprises worth $1,371,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.20% of the company’s stock.

About Lee Enterprises

Lee Enterprises, Incorporated provides local news and information, and advertising services in the United States. The company offers digital subscription platforms; daily, weekly, and monthly newspapers and niche publications; and web hosting and content management services. It also provides advertising and marketing services, such as audience extension, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, web and mobile production, social media services, and reputation monitoring and management.