National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) Short Interest Down 17.7% in April

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,300,000 shares, a drop of 17.7% from the March 31st total of 4,010,000 shares. Approximately 5.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 713,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National CineMedia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hill Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in National CineMedia by 67.4% in the 4th quarter. Hill Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 17,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 6,889 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D acquired a new stake in National CineMedia during the third quarter worth approximately $136,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in National CineMedia during the 3rd quarter worth $212,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in National CineMedia in the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, Zazove Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of National CineMedia by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Zazove Associates LLC now owns 130,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $539,000 after acquiring an additional 3,921 shares during the period. 69.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Wedbush upped their price objective on National CineMedia from $4.50 to $5.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. B. Riley upgraded National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $4.50 to $6.75 in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “speculative buy” rating and issued a $6.00 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th.

National CineMedia Stock Performance

NCMI stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $4.39. 373,752 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 657,656. National CineMedia has a 1-year low of $2.50 and a 1-year high of $5.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $425.96 million, a PE ratio of 0.14 and a beta of 1.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 18th. The business services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.10 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $90.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.25 million. National CineMedia had a net margin of 426.68% and a negative return on equity of 22.42%. On average, equities analysts forecast that National CineMedia will post 0.03 earnings per share for the current year.

About National CineMedia

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.