Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) EVP Blake Russell Sells 185 Shares of Stock

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) EVP Blake Russell sold 185 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.32, for a total value of $34,654.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,396 shares in the company, valued at $4,944,498.72. This represents a 0.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

Shares of NXST opened at $185.12 on Thursday. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.00 and a twelve month high of $254.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $199.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.65 billion, a PE ratio of 39.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is currently 159.66%.

Nexstar Media Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nexstar Media Group this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple Nexstar executives and insiders, including Brett Jenkins, Michael Biard, Lee Ann Gliha, Andrew Alford, Sean Compton, Dana Zimmer, Lindsey Knapp, Dan Lanzano, Rachel Morgan, Blake Russell, and Gary Weitman, sold shares at $187.32 as part of equity vesting tax obligations. SEC filing reference
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remain constructive on NXST, with recent upgrades and raised price targets helping offset some of the insider-sale concern. MarketBeat NXST page
• Negative Sentiment: The cluster of insider sales may create a short-term overhang, since investors often view repeated insider disposals as a cautious signal even when they are non-discretionary. SEC filing reference

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,402,272 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,738,000 after purchasing an additional 10,949 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,181,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,950,000 after purchasing an additional 23,360 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 882,322 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,598,000 after purchasing an additional 187,864 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,114,000 after purchasing an additional 13,084 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 643,864 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,427,000 after purchasing an additional 11,477 shares during the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NXST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Barrington Research reiterated 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 upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $252.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $259.67.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

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.