Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on SBGI. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Sinclair from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Sinclair from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on Sinclair from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $17.00 price objective on Sinclair in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.20.

Sinclair Stock Performance

SBGI opened at $14.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.28, a quick ratio of 2.42 and a current ratio of 1.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $14.06 and a 200 day moving average of $14.35. Sinclair has a fifty-two week low of $11.89 and a fifty-two week high of $17.88.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($1.06) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by ($0.82). Sinclair had a negative return on equity of 16.09% and a net margin of 1.60%.The company had revenue of $840.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $838.99 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.91) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sinclair will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sinclair Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. Sinclair’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 133.33%.

Insider Activity at Sinclair

In related news, Director Daniel C. Keith sold 17,000 shares of Sinclair stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total value of $255,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,332.44. This trade represents a 40.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 42.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sinclair

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Sinclair by 142.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Sinclair in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Sinclair by 175.6% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,882 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Sinclair during the third quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Sinclair during the second quarter worth $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.71% of the company’s stock.

About Sinclair

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc (NASDAQ: SBGI) is a media and entertainment company headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Founded in 1971 as a single UHF television station operator, Sinclair has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest owners of local television stations in the United States. Over its history, the company has pursued a diversified portfolio that includes both traditional broadcast assets and newer digital platforms.

At its core, Sinclair operates over 190 television stations affiliated with the major national broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW and MyNetworkTV.