Saga Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGA) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Saga Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGA) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 12,811 shares, an increase of 128.1% from the June 30th total of 5,617 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 11,041 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Institutional Trading of Saga Communications

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Marquette Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Saga Communications during the second quarter valued at $257,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Saga Communications by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 35,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 2,121 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Saga Communications by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 350,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC acquired a new position in Saga Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $163,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Saga Communications by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 59,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 1,923 shares during the last quarter. 74.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Saga Communications Price Performance

NASDAQ SGA traded down $0.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $8.73. 959 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,438. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 2.81. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $9.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.54. The company has a market cap of $55.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.47 and a beta of -0.10. Saga Communications has a 1-year low of $8.24 and a 1-year high of $13.51.

Saga Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.4%. Saga Communications’s payout ratio is currently -74.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Noble Financial cut Saga Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Saga Communications from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Saga Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Saga Communications Company Profile

Saga Communications, Inc (NASDAQ: SGA) is an independent radio broadcasting company that owns and operates a portfolio of local radio stations across the United States. Headquartered in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, the company focuses on full‐service radio properties offering a variety of formats, including music, news‐talk and sports programming. In addition to traditional over‐the‐air broadcasts, Saga leverages web streaming and mobile platforms to broaden listener reach and provide advertisers with multimedia opportunities.

Founded in 1985 by Edward J.