Cinemark (NYSE:CNK) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Cinemark (NYSE:CNK) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on CNK. B. Riley Financial boosted their price objective on Cinemark from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Cinemark from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wedbush raised their price objective on Cinemark from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Cinemark from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $23.00 to $30.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Cinemark from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cinemark presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.00.

Cinemark Stock Performance

Shares of Cinemark stock opened at $37.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.34 and a beta of 1.00. Cinemark has a 52 week low of $21.60 and a 52 week high of $38.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $32.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.84.

Cinemark (NYSE:CNK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.16. Cinemark had a return on equity of 50.94% and a net margin of 6.44%.The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Cinemark will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Cinemark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th were issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 28th. Cinemark’s dividend payout ratio is 21.30%.

Institutional Trading of Cinemark

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its stake in Cinemark by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 15,057,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,946,000 after purchasing an additional 3,563,810 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Cinemark by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,536,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $221,638,000 after buying an additional 742,307 shares during the period. Lavaca Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cinemark in the 4th quarter worth $133,045,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Cinemark by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,950,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,812,000 after acquiring an additional 60,176 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in Cinemark during the fourth quarter worth about $55,296,000.

About Cinemark

Cinemark Holdings, Inc (NYSE: CNK) is a leading theatrical exhibitor that acquires, develops and operates motion picture theatres under the Cinemark® brand in the United States and Latin America. The company’s core business involves the presentation of first-run feature films coupled with an array of in‐theatre services, including concessions, premium auditoriums and loyalty programs. Cinemark’s exhibition portfolio encompasses both corporate‐owned and franchised complexes, offering moviegoers a range of experiences from standard screens to large‐format halls.

The company’s product offerings extend beyond ticket sales to include an assortment of concession items, such as popcorn, fountain beverages, candy and specialty snacks, as well as bar and lounge concepts in select locations.