The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ:SSP) Short Interest Update

The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ:SSP) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,860,000 shares, a drop of 18.9% from the July 15th total of 4,760,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 964,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.0 days. Currently, 6.3% of the company’s stock are sold short.

E.W. Scripps Stock Performance

Shares of SSP traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $2.10. The stock had a trading volume of 934,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 947,718. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market cap of $179.32 million, a P/E ratio of -0.18 and a beta of 1.79. E.W. Scripps has a 52 week low of $1.96 and a 52 week high of $9.35. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $2.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.78.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $573.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $586.65 million. E.W. Scripps had a negative net margin of 39.87% and a positive return on equity of 3.17%. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.09) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that E.W. Scripps will post 0.75 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On E.W. Scripps

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of E.W. Scripps by 1,394.8% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 4,059 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. purchased a new stake in shares of E.W. Scripps in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of E.W. Scripps in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of E.W. Scripps during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 93.5% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 2,517 shares in the last quarter. 67.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SSP. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of E.W. Scripps from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. StockNews.com lowered E.W. Scripps from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on E.W. Scripps from $6.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 13th.

E.W. Scripps Company Profile

The E.W. Scripps Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media enterprise through a portfolio of local television stations, national news, and entertainment networks in the United States. It operates through Local Media, Scripps Networks, and Other segments. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, which produce news, information, sports, and entertainment content, as well as its related digital operations; runs network, syndicated, and original programming, and local sporting events; and provides core and political advertising services.