National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Lowered to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning.

NCMI has been the subject of several other reports. B. Riley raised shares of National CineMedia from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the stock from $4.50 to $6.75 in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Wedbush reissued a neutral rating and issued a $5.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a speculative buy rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Tuesday.

National CineMedia Stock Performance

National CineMedia stock opened at $4.69 on Wednesday. National CineMedia has a 1-year low of $2.57 and a 1-year high of $5.75. The firm has a market cap of $455.05 million, a P/E ratio of 0.14 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $4.68 and a 200-day moving average of $4.29.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 18th. The business services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.01). National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 22.42% and a net margin of 426.68%. The business had revenue of $90.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.25 million. Sell-side analysts expect that National CineMedia will post 0.05 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National CineMedia

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 4,740,197 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $19,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,650 shares during the last quarter. Glendon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the third quarter valued at $7,538,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in National CineMedia in the fourth quarter worth $5,914,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of National CineMedia by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,336,947 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,535,000 after acquiring an additional 187,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PSquared Asset Management AG bought a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the third quarter valued at $3,067,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.49% of the company’s stock.

About National CineMedia

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.