Gray Media’s (GTN) “Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Barrington Research

Barrington Research reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $6.50 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Gray Media from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Gray Media from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Benchmark increased their price target on Gray Media from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Gray Media from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Gray Media in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $8.13.

Gray Media Price Performance

NYSE:GTN opened at $5.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $555.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.83 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $4.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.04. Gray Media has a 1-year low of $3.13 and a 1-year high of $6.30.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $792.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $780.50 million. Gray Media had a negative net margin of 2.75% and a negative return on equity of 2.51%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Gray Media will post 3.32 EPS for the current year.

Gray Media Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.9%. Gray Media’s payout ratio is currently -22.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GTN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Gray Media by 55.3% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,878,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,932,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025,133 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Gray Media by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,188,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,113,000 after buying an additional 994,474 shares in the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC boosted its position in Gray Media by 43.6% during the third quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 3,236,997 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,758,000 after acquiring an additional 983,415 shares during the last quarter. DSC Meridian Capital LP purchased a new stake in Gray Media during the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,432,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Gray Media by 76.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,361,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,169,000 after acquiring an additional 590,704 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.64% of the company’s stock.

Gray Media Company Profile

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) is a U.S.-based broadcasting and digital media company that owns and operates a portfolio of local television stations and associated digital platforms. The company’s core business centers on delivering local news, sports and entertainment programming through its network-affiliated broadcast outlets. In addition to traditional over-the-air distribution, Gray Media supports multi-platform video streaming and on-demand services for audiences across its markets.

Gray Media’s television stations carry network programming from major national broadcasters, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and The CW, and often feature locally produced news and public affairs content.