Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Stock Price

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) had its price target upped by equities researchers at Citigroup from $215.00 to $225.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 11.73% from the stock’s previous close.

NXST has been the topic of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $255.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a report on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $249.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.50.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Up 6.0%

NASDAQ:NXST traded up $11.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $201.38. The stock had a trading volume of 291,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 382,725. Nexstar Media Group has a twelve month low of $153.17 and a twelve month high of $254.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $167.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $191.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43. The company has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30 and a beta of 0.97.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $7.92 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.08 by ($0.16). Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 32.25% and a net margin of 5.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 78.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Nexstar Media Group will post 32.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Nexstar Media Group

In related news, insider Andrew Alford sold 2,823 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.69, for a total value of $467,742.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,942,880.94. The trade was a 19.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Bernadette S. Aulestia sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.80, for a total transaction of $56,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $818,744.40. This represents a 6.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,596 shares of company stock valued at $1,733,169. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nexstar Media Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NXST. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 685.8% in the 1st quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 92,817 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,784,000 after buying an additional 81,005 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc. purchased a new position in Nexstar Media Group during the 2nd quarter worth $8,529,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter worth $4,459,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 173,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,332,000 after acquiring an additional 25,193 shares during the period. Finally, Penn Capital Management Company LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 101,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,506,000 after acquiring an additional 13,264 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

Nexstar Media Group is a U.S. media company focused on local television broadcasting and national programming. It owns and operates local television stations across the country, many affiliated with major broadcast networks, and produces local news, sports, and other programming for viewers in their communities.

The company also operates NewsNation, a national news and entertainment network, and holds a majority interest in The CW. Its digital businesses distribute news and other content online, while advertising and fees for carrying its stations and networks are among its business activities.

Founded by Perry Sook in 1996 and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar expanded its station portfolio through acquisitions, including its 2019 acquisition of Tribune Media.