Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Position in News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 636,100 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 36,429 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in News were worth $17,525,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NWSA. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of News by 2,392.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,005 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in News in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in News during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of News by 49.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of News during the third quarter worth $85,000. Institutional investors own 66.97% of the company’s stock.

News Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ NWSA opened at $26.59 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.43 and a beta of 1.34. News Co. has a 1-year low of $22.65 and a 1-year high of $30.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $28.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.65.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.04. News had a return on equity of 5.31% and a net margin of 4.22%. As a group, research analysts expect that News Co. will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

News Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. News’s payout ratio is currently 27.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on NWSA shares. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of News from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on News from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded News to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup started coverage on News in a report on Friday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of News from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $39.25.

News Profile

News Corporation, a media and information services company, creates and distributes authoritative and engaging content, and other products and services for consumers and businesses worldwide. It operates through six segments: Digital Real Estate Services, Subscription Video Services, Dow Jones, Book Publishing, News Media, and Other.