FOX (NASDAQ:FOXA) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Shares of Fox Co. (NASDAQ:FOXA) gapped up prior to trading on Monday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $41.88, but opened at $45.63. FOX shares last traded at $43.36, with a volume of 1,070,601 shares.

The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.33. FOX had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 10.74%. The company had revenue of $3.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.09 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of FOX from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on FOX from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI raised their price target on FOX from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on FOX from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of FOX from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at FOX

In related news, CEO Lachlan K. Murdoch acquired 119,705 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was bought at an average price of $39.06 per share, for a total transaction of $4,675,677.30. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,076,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,044,457.42. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other FOX news, COO John Nallen sold 52,874 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.96, for a total transaction of $2,059,971.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 249,424 shares in the company, valued at $9,717,559.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Lachlan K. Murdoch purchased 119,705 shares of FOX stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $39.06 per share, with a total value of $4,675,677.30. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,044,457.42. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 21.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FOXA. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in shares of FOX by 176.6% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of FOX in the second quarter worth $51,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of FOX during the second quarter worth $52,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of FOX during the first quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of FOX by 283.0% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 2,128 shares during the period. 52.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

FOX Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.44 and a 200-day moving average of $37.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 2.33 and a current ratio of 2.54. The company has a market cap of $20.07 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.76.

FOX Company Profile

Fox Corporation operates as a news, sports, and entertainment company in the United States (U.S.). The company operates through four segments: Cable Network Programming, Television, Credible, and The FOX Studio Lot. The Cable Network Programming segment produces and licenses news and sports content for distribution through traditional cable television systems, direct broadcast satellite operators and telecommunication companies, virtual multi-channel video programming distributors, and other digital platforms primarily in the U.S.