Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) Stock Has Average Target Price of $256.50

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $256.67.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a report on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $255.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $249.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research cut Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th.

Key Nexstar Media Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Nexstar Media Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $250 from $249 and reaffirmed its Overweight rating. The new target implies about 31.6% upside from the cited $190.02 share price. Wells Fargo rating information
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue reached a record $2.13 billion, up 78% year over year and above the $2.07 billion analyst estimate. Nexstar said political advertising revenue reached a record $1.1 billion for 2026, 31% higher than in the 2022 midterm cycle, providing a major boost to results. Nexstar Q3 revenue and political advertising
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $7.92 per share, below the $8.08 consensus estimate. The earnings miss tempers the otherwise strong revenue growth. Nexstar Q3 earnings results

Insider Transactions at Nexstar Media Group

In related news, COO Michael Biard sold 2,465 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.82, for a total transaction of $458,046.30. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 20,890 shares in the company, valued at $3,881,779.80. This trade represents a 10.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Dana Zimmer sold 4,008 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.46, for a total value of $751,339.68. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $335,928.32. This trade represents a 69.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 9,596 shares of company stock valued at $1,733,169 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NXST. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 17.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 173,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,332,000 after acquiring an additional 25,193 shares in the last quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Nexstar Media Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,285,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in Nexstar Media Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,607,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the second quarter valued at about $1,576,000. Finally, Odyssean LLC grew its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 188.6% in the second quarter. Odyssean LLC now owns 17,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,042,000 after purchasing an additional 11,133 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of NXST stock opened at $190.02 on Monday. Nexstar Media Group has a fifty-two week low of $153.17 and a fifty-two week high of $254.30. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $167.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $191.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.29 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $7.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.08 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 32.25% and a net margin of 5.48%. Nexstar Media Group’s quarterly revenue was up 78.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.14 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Nexstar Media Group will post 32.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is 67.70%.

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group is a U.S. media company focused on local television broadcasting and national programming. It owns and operates local television stations across the country, many affiliated with major broadcast networks, and produces local news, sports, and other programming for viewers in their communities.

The company also operates NewsNation, a national news and entertainment network, and holds a majority interest in The CW. Its digital businesses distribute news and other content online, while advertising and fees for carrying its stations and networks are among its business activities.

Founded by Perry Sook in 1996 and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar expanded its station portfolio through acquisitions, including its 2019 acquisition of Tribune Media.