Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Sinclair, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBGI)’s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $14.67 and traded as high as $15.32. Sinclair shares last traded at $15.24, with a volume of 281,604 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SBGI. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Sinclair in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Sinclair from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sinclair from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Sinclair from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.00.

Sinclair Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $15.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.67. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 14.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.58 and a beta of 0.96.

Sinclair (NASDAQ:SBGI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.65) by $0.63. Sinclair had a negative net margin of 1.35% and a negative return on equity of 10.19%. The business had revenue of $773.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $766.78 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Sinclair, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sinclair Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Sinclair’s payout ratio is presently -161.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sinclair news, Director Howard E. Friedman sold 14,713 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.11, for a total value of $222,313.43. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 77,685 shares in the company, valued at $1,173,820.35. The trade was a 15.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Benson E. Legg sold 6,548 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.81, for a total transaction of $103,523.88. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 71,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,125,118.65. This trade represents a 8.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 50,637 shares of company stock valued at $815,535 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 46.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sinclair

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBGI. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sinclair by 142.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Sinclair by 175.6% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 1,882 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Sinclair during the third quarter worth about $48,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Sinclair during the second quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Sinclair by 26.2% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 3,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.71% of the company’s stock.

Sinclair Company Profile

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc (NASDAQ: SBGI) is a media and entertainment company headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Founded in 1971 as a single UHF television station operator, Sinclair has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest owners of local television stations in the United States. Over its history, the company has pursued a diversified portfolio that includes both traditional broadcast assets and newer digital platforms.

At its core, Sinclair operates over 190 television stations affiliated with the major national broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, The CW and MyNetworkTV.