OLD Second National Bank of Aurora Takes $45,000 Position in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST)

OLD Second National Bank of Aurora purchased a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NXST. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in Nexstar Media Group by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 23,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,522,000 after buying an additional 2,510 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $171,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,714,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $323,233,000 after purchasing an additional 12,720 shares during the period. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 3,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $714,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NXST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TheStreet raised Nexstar Media Group from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Rosenblatt Securities dropped their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $216.00 to $213.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Nexstar Media Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Sean Compton sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.61, for a total value of $487,830.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 9,489 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543,006.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Sean Compton sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.61, for a total transaction of $487,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,489 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543,006.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 1,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.00, for a total transaction of $244,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $751,150. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 46,508 shares of company stock valued at $7,487,950 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

NXST stock opened at $161.96 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a PE ratio of 16.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90. The business has a 50 day moving average of $165.78 and a 200-day moving average of $158.04. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $132.30 and a 12-month high of $187.32.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $3.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.42 by ($1.10). Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 7.03% and a return on equity of 14.06%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $8.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 26.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Nexstar Media Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 9th were given a $1.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.17%. This is a positive change from Nexstar Media Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is 70.20%.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

Nexstar Media Group, Inc operates as a diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across the television and digital platforms in the United States. It owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to various markets; and offers television programming services.