Empyrean Capital Partners LP Sells 100,000 Shares of Sinclair, Inc. $SBGI

Empyrean Capital Partners LP trimmed its position in Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,044,493 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100,000 shares during the quarter. Empyrean Capital Partners LP owned 1.50% of Sinclair worth $15,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sinclair by 142.0% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sinclair during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of Sinclair by 175.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Sinclair during the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Sinclair during the 2nd quarter worth $54,000. 41.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sinclair Stock Performance

Shares of Sinclair stock opened at $13.66 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.42, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.10. Sinclair, Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.89 and a twelve month high of $17.88. The stock has a market cap of $985.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.18 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s fifty day moving average is $14.53 and its 200 day moving average is $14.67.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.68) by $0.96. Sinclair had a net margin of 2.00% and a negative return on equity of 12.62%. The company had revenue of $807.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $792.63 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($2.30) earnings per share. Sinclair’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sinclair, Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current year.

Sinclair Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.3%. Sinclair’s payout ratio is currently 111.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sinclair

In related news, Director Daniel C. Keith sold 22,613 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.10, for a total value of $296,230.30. Following the sale, the director owned 25,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $327,853.70. The trade was a 47.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 42,000 shares of company stock valued at $550,200 over the last quarter. Insiders own 42.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SBGI shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Sinclair from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on Sinclair from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Sinclair from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $17.00 price objective on Sinclair in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price objective on Sinclair from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.20.

Sinclair Company Profile

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc (NASDAQ: SBGI) is a media and entertainment company headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Founded in 1971 as a single UHF television station operator, Sinclair has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest owners of local television stations in the United States. Over its history, the company has pursued a diversified portfolio that includes both traditional broadcast assets and newer digital platforms.

At its core, Sinclair operates over 190 television stations affiliated with the major national broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW and MyNetworkTV.