Confluence Wealth Services Inc. Grows Position in The New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT)

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. increased its position in shares of The New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT) by 3.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 17,146 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 538 shares during the quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.’s holdings in New York Times were worth $741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of New York Times by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 40,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,738,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in New York Times by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 195,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,454,000 after buying an additional 18,337 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in New York Times during the 1st quarter valued at about $452,000. FCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in New York Times during the 1st quarter valued at about $324,000. Finally, Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in New York Times by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 88,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,839,000 after buying an additional 20,567 shares in the last quarter. 95.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NYT. Argus upgraded shares of New York Times from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $51.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 4th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of New York Times in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $52.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of New York Times from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.67.

New York Times Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NYT traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $43.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,271,058 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,264,230. The New York Times Company has a 52 week low of $35.06 and a 52 week high of $49.87. The company has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $43.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.78.

New York Times (NYSE:NYT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $676.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $680.02 million. New York Times had a net margin of 9.58% and a return on equity of 16.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The New York Times Company will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New York Times Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 1st. This is a positive change from New York Times’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. New York Times’s payout ratio is 37.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Diane Brayton sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.84, for a total transaction of $299,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,312 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,684,126.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other New York Times news, Director David S. Perpich sold 3,014 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.03, for a total transaction of $132,706.42. Following the sale, the director now owns 20,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $916,396.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Diane Brayton sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.84, for a total transaction of $299,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,312 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,684,126.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,557 shares of company stock worth $1,029,968 in the last 90 days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About New York Times

The New York Times Company, together with its subsidiaries, creates, collects, and distributes news and information worldwide. The company operates through two segments, The New York Times Group and The Athletic. It offers The New York Times (The Times) through company's mobile application, website, printed newspaper, and associated content, such as podcast.