Demars Financial Group LLC Buys 768,934 Shares of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST)

Demars Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) by 16,009.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 773,737 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 768,934 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Nexstar Media Group were worth $122,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 27,180.2% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,206,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202,453 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,102,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,103,000 after acquiring an additional 18,675 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 403,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,777,000 after acquiring an additional 19,116 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 4th quarter worth about $44,460,000. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 277,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,656,000 after purchasing an additional 4,457 shares during the period. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ NXST opened at $147.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $163.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.09. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $143.32 and a 1 year high of $191.86.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $7.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.22 by ($1.66). Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 26.03% and a net margin of 11.39%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 21.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This is a boost from Nexstar Media Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.69. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.05%. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on NXST. Loop Capital raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $208.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Andrew Alford sold 3,768 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.98, for a total transaction of $685,700.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $983,601.90. This trade represents a 41.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gary Weitman sold 1,241 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.21, for a total value of $219,917.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $704,409.75. This represents a 23.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 39,105 shares of company stock valued at $6,722,463 in the last three months. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Nexstar Media Group

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.