Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on TSQ. Noble Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of Townsquare Media in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Townsquare Media in a research note on Tuesday.

Townsquare Media Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE TSQ opened at $7.89 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $122.73 million, a PE ratio of -2.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.33. Townsquare Media has a 12 month low of $7.56 and a 12 month high of $13.57. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $8.67 and its 200 day moving average is $9.51.

Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 17th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60. The firm had revenue of $117.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.41 million. Townsquare Media had a negative net margin of 8.84% and a negative return on equity of 57.10%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.34 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Townsquare Media will post 1.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Townsquare Media Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a boost from Townsquare Media’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.13%. Townsquare Media’s dividend payout ratio is currently -29.15%.

Insider Transactions at Townsquare Media

In other Townsquare Media news, EVP Scott Schatz sold 4,594 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total value of $44,332.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $302,681.90. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claire Marie Yenicay sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.22, for a total transaction of $46,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 214,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,981,866.66. This trade represents a 2.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,594 shares of company stock worth $138,632. 30.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Townsquare Media

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in Townsquare Media by 28.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,503 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Townsquare Media by 4.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 177,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,800,000 after buying an additional 6,800 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Townsquare Media by 59.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 14,109 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Townsquare Media by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 278,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,835,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151 shares during the period. Finally, Krilogy Financial LLC lifted its stake in Townsquare Media by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $364,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.69% of the company’s stock.

About Townsquare Media

Townsquare Media, Inc operates as a digital media and marketing solutions company in small and medium-sized businesses. It operates through three segments: Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions, Digital Advertising, and Broadcast Advertising. The Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions segment offers website design, creation, and development, as well as hosting services; and search engine optimization, online directory optimization, e-commerce solutions, online reputation monitoring, social media management, appointment scheduling, payment and invoice, customer management, and email and SMS marketing services.