Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) Shares Gap Up After Dividend Announcement

Gray Media Inc. (NYSE:GTN)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $4.92, but opened at $5.21. Gray Media shares last traded at $5.3450, with a volume of 713,892 shares.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Gray Media’s dividend payout ratio is currently 110.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on GTN. Zacks Research lowered shares of Gray Media from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Gray Media from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Gray Media from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gray Media currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.88.

Gray Media Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $550.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 1.00.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by ($0.20). Gray Media had a net margin of 1.84% and a return on equity of 3.00%. The business had revenue of $972.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $955.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.24) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Gray Media Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Gray Media by 21.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 12,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 2,201 shares in the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC lifted its stake in Gray Media by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 3,514,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,847,000 after acquiring an additional 10,230 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Gray Media during the third quarter worth about $59,000. Capital Management Corp VA lifted its position in shares of Gray Media by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Management Corp VA now owns 7,092,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,918,000 after buying an additional 22,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blueprint Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gray Media in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $464,000. 78.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gray Media Company Profile

Gray Media, formerly known as Gray Television, is a multimedia company that owns and operates local television stations and related digital media properties in markets across the United States. Its stations provide local news, weather, sports, public affairs and entertainment programming, while also distributing content through websites, mobile platforms and other digital channels.

The company’s broadcast portfolio includes affiliates of major networks such as ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and The CW, as well as independent and specialty stations.