Welch Group LLC Purchases New Stake in Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA)

Welch Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $142,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Paramount Global by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC increased its position in Paramount Global by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 7,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 850 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its position in Paramount Global by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 29,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 879 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Paramount Global by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 134,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,985,000 after buying an additional 887 shares during the period. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its position in Paramount Global by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 18,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 889 shares during the period. 73.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paramount Global Trading Up 4.7 %

NASDAQ:PARA opened at $10.06 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Paramount Global has a 1-year low of $9.54 and a 1-year high of $17.50. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.69.

Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.28. Paramount Global had a positive return on equity of 3.35% and a negative net margin of 0.15%. The business had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.09 EPS. Paramount Global’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Paramount Global will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paramount Global Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 17th will be given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. Paramount Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -133.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PARA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Paramount Global from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Paramount Global in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Wolfe Research raised Paramount Global from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com raised Paramount Global from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Paramount Global from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $14.00 to $9.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.37.

Paramount Global Profile

Paramount Global operates as a media, streaming, and entertainment company worldwide. It operates through TV Media, Direct-to-Consumer, and Filmed Entertainment segments. The TV Media segment operates CBS Television Network, a domestic broadcast television network; CBS Stations, a television station; and international free-to-air networks comprising Network 10, Channel 5, Telefe, and Chilevisión; domestic premium and basic cable networks, such as Paramount+ with Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, The Smithsonian Channel, Nickelodeon, BET Media Group, and CBS Sports Network; and international extensions of these brands.