Brokerages Set National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) Price Target at $7.70

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $7.70.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $7.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 14th. Wedbush upgraded National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 103,685 shares of National CineMedia stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $5.18 per share, with a total value of $537,088.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,310,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,408,042.94. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National CineMedia

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of National CineMedia by 502.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 4,237 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new position in National CineMedia in the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in National CineMedia in the fourth quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of National CineMedia in the fourth quarter worth about $91,000. 69.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

National CineMedia Stock Performance

National CineMedia stock opened at $5.75 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $6.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.64. National CineMedia has a 1 year low of $4.12 and a 1 year high of $7.60. The company has a market cap of $547.46 million, a PE ratio of -23.00 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $86.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.77 million. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.61% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. Equities analysts anticipate that National CineMedia will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

National CineMedia Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a — dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia’s payout ratio is presently -52.17%.

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.