TEGNA (NYSE:TGNA) Trading Up 6.5% – Should You Buy?

TEGNA Inc. (NYSE:TGNA) was up 6.5% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $17.80 and last traded at $17.71. Approximately 1,039,279 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 13% from the average daily volume of 1,190,181 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.63.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on TGNA. Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of TEGNA from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on TEGNA from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com downgraded TEGNA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of TEGNA in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised TEGNA from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $21.00 to $23.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.75.

TEGNA Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $18.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.94. The firm has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 0.52.

TEGNA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. TEGNA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On TEGNA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in TGNA. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in TEGNA during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of TEGNA during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of TEGNA during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in TEGNA by 95.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in TEGNA by 80.2% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,683 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 749 shares during the last quarter. 92.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About TEGNA

TEGNA Inc, a media company, provides broadcast advertising and marketing products and services for businesses. The company operates 47 television stations in 39 markets of the United States that produce local programming, such as news, sports, and entertainment. It offers local and national non-political advertising; political advertising; production of programming from third parties; production of advertising materials; and digital marketing services, as well as advertising services on the stations' Websites, tablets, and mobile products.