News (NASDAQ:NWSA) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $29.13 and last traded at $28.81, with a volume of 57393 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $27.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NWSA shares. Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of News from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on News from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.00.

News Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $26.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.17 and a beta of 1.34.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.49 billion. News had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 4.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.14 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that News Co. will post 0.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On News

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in shares of News by 13.4% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 230,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,027,000 after purchasing an additional 27,324 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in News by 3,107.1% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 59,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 57,512 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its holdings in shares of News by 59.6% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 72,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,987,000 after acquiring an additional 26,911 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of News by 73.7% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 88,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,325,000 after acquiring an additional 37,692 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in News during the first quarter valued at $4,300,000. 66.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About News

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.