National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Thursday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on NCMI. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 target price (up from $6.00) on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Monday, November 4th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Barrington Research boosted their price target on shares of National CineMedia from $7.50 to $8.25 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $8.06.

National CineMedia Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NCMI traded down $0.19 during trading on Thursday, reaching $6.23. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 602,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 499,174. The company has a market cap of $591.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.92 and a beta of 2.06. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a fifty day moving average of $6.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $6.41. National CineMedia has a twelve month low of $3.65 and a twelve month high of $7.60.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The business services provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $62.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.20 million. National CineMedia had a negative net margin of 9.49% and a negative return on equity of 2.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that National CineMedia will post -0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other National CineMedia news, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total transaction of $154,560.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 66,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $436,085.37. The trade was a 26.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new stake in National CineMedia in the fourth quarter worth approximately $408,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 15,605 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 98.0% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 153,492 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,082,000 after buying an additional 75,978 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in National CineMedia by 23.8% during 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 buying an additional 222,498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in National CineMedia by 5.6% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,936,947 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $48,905,000 after acquiring an additional 365,360 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.49% of the company’s stock.

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.