National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Trading Up 4.4% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) were up 4.4% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $6.05 and last traded at $6.00. Approximately 71,949 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 646,383 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NCMI has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. William Blair restated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wedbush upgraded National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $7.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.70.

National CineMedia Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $572.78 million, a P/E ratio of -24.10 and a beta of 2.19. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $6.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.74.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.61% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. The business had revenue of $86.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.77 million. Equities analysts anticipate that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

National CineMedia Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia’s payout ratio is -52.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at National CineMedia

In other news, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total transaction of $154,560.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 66,987 shares in the company, valued at $436,085.37. This represents a 26.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd acquired 103,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.18 per share, for a total transaction of $537,088.30. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 10,310,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,408,042.94. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in National CineMedia by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,936,947 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,905,000 after buying an additional 365,360 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of National CineMedia by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,923,516 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,412,000 after buying an additional 132,895 shares during the last quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC bought a new stake in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter worth $14,147,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in National CineMedia by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,961,963 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,835,000 after purchasing an additional 15,605 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in National CineMedia by 23.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,157,488 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,160,000 after purchasing an additional 222,498 shares during the last quarter. 69.49% of the stock is 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.