Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on NXST. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $290.00 to $253.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $290.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Citigroup raised Nexstar Media Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $252.00 to $220.00 in a report on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.67.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Down 1.0%

NASDAQ:NXST opened at $195.39 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.97. Nexstar Media Group has a twelve month low of $164.00 and a twelve month high of $254.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $208.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $208.09. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 159.66%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,402,272 shares of the company’s stock valued at $284,738,000 after buying an additional 10,949 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,181,727 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,950,000 after buying an additional 23,360 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 882,322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,598,000 after buying an additional 187,864 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,114,000 after buying an additional 13,084 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 642,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,070,000 after buying an additional 75,228 shares in the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group, Inc is a diversified American media company engaged primarily in the ownership, operation and strategic affiliation of local television stations, digital platforms and cable networks. The company provides a range of broadcast content, including local news, sports coverage, entertainment programming and syndicated shows, reaching audiences in more than 100 television markets across the United States.

Founded in 1996 by entrepreneur Perry Sook and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar has built its presence through organic growth and a series of high-profile acquisitions.