National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Sunday.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on NCMI. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $6.00 price target (down from $7.00) on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, October 31st. Barrington Research cut their target price on National CineMedia from $7.00 to $6.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research cut National CineMedia from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.60.

National CineMedia Stock Down 0.5%

NASDAQ NCMI traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3.90. The company had a trading volume of 548,474 shares, compared to its average volume of 623,299. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.79. National CineMedia has a fifty-two week low of $3.81 and a fifty-two week high of $7.60. The stock has a market cap of $365.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.57 and a beta of 1.83.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.05. The company had revenue of $63.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.23 million. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 3.51% and a negative net margin of 8.62%. National CineMedia has set its Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that National CineMedia will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

National CineMedia Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be paid a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. National CineMedia’s payout ratio is -80.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at National CineMedia

In other news, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 9,039 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.44, for a total value of $40,133.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 118,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $528,351.12. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National CineMedia

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCMI. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd acquired a new position in National CineMedia during the 2nd quarter worth about $20,338,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in National CineMedia by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,538,933 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,667,000 after buying an additional 615,417 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of National CineMedia by 5.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,358,287 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,452,000 after purchasing an additional 232,702 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP raised its holdings in National CineMedia by 156.3% during the first quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 381,362 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,227,000 after buying an additional 232,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 217.0% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 280,509 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,359,000 after acquiring an additional 192,031 shares during the last quarter. 69.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

National CineMedia Company Profile

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.