Wall Street Zen Upgrades E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) to Hold

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on E.W. Scripps from $4.00 to $3.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5.50.

E.W. Scripps Stock Up 5.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:SSP opened at $3.31 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $2.56. E.W. Scripps has a 12-month low of $1.36 and a 12-month high of $4.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92. The firm has a market cap of $292.37 million, a P/E ratio of 6.90 and a beta of 1.01.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.08). E.W. Scripps had a return on equity of 17.68% and a net margin of 4.25%.The business had revenue of $540.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $544.17 million. Analysts predict that E.W. Scripps will post 1.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SSP. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in E.W. Scripps in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 111.8% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 8,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 4,715 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of E.W. Scripps during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in E.W. Scripps by 137.3% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 13,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 7,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Group One Trading LLC raised its stake in E.W. Scripps by 479.9% in the fourth quarter. Group One Trading LLC now owns 13,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 11,584 shares in the last quarter. 67.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

E.W. Scripps Company Profile

The E.W. Scripps Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media enterprise through a portfolio of local television stations, national news, and entertainment networks in the United States. It operates through Local Media, Scripps Networks, and Other segments. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, which produce news, information, sports, and entertainment content, as well as its related digital operations; runs network, syndicated, and original programming, and local sporting events; and provides core and political advertising services.