Benchmark Cuts National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Price Target to $7.00

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) had its price objective decreased by Benchmark from $8.00 to $7.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on NCMI. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of National CineMedia from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. B. Riley downgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $7.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 14th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $7.50 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, William Blair reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $7.50 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, National CineMedia presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.00.

National CineMedia Price Performance

Shares of NCMI stock opened at $4.89 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $5.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.02. National CineMedia has a 52 week low of $4.12 and a 52 week high of $7.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $461.13 million, a PE ratio of -25.74 and a beta of 2.12.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The business services provider reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.20) by ($0.04). National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.83% and a negative net margin of 7.68%. The company had revenue of $34.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.13 million. Analysts anticipate that National CineMedia will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

National CineMedia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. National CineMedia’s dividend payout ratio is currently -63.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National CineMedia

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCMI. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in National CineMedia by 502.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 4,237 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the first quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.