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Media Stocks Plunge Amid Market Volatility

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

As of Monday, Aug. 24, 2015, at 1:30 PM ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading down 237 points (-1.4%) at 16,223. The NYSE advances/declines ratio sat at 447 issues advancing vs. 2,727 declining with 57 unchanged. The Media industry was particularly hard hit, with a 1.5% decline compared to the S&P 500's 1.1% fall.

Key Takeaways:

  • Twenty-First Century Fox (FOX) was one of the biggest decliners in the Media industry, down $0.55 (-2.0%) to $27.37 on heavy volume, with 4.5 million shares exchanged compared to its average daily volume of 4.2 million shares.
  • Comcast (CMCSA) was also down, with a $0.64 (-1.1%) decline to $56.14 on heavy volume, as 14.5 million shares exchanged hands compared to its average daily volume of 13.8 million shares.
  • TheStreet Ratings rated Comcast as a buy, citing the company's revenue growth, solid stock price performance, and attractive valuation levels.
  • Twenty-First Century Fox's strengths included its notable return on equity, reasonable valuation levels, and expanding profit margins, but it also showed weaknesses including unimpressive growth in net income, weak operating cash flow, and a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself.
  • The Media industry's decline was led by top decliners including Liberty Interactive Corp Class B (LVNTB) and Thomson Reuters (TRI).

Statistics:

  • Dow Jones Industrial Average down 237 points (-1.4%) at 16,223.
  • NYSE advances/declines ratio: 447 issues advancing vs. 2,727 declining with 57 unchanged.
  • Media industry decline: 1.5% compared to S&P 500's 1.1% fall.
  • Twenty-First Century Fox (FOX) down $0.55 (-2.0%) to $27.37 on heavy volume, with 4.5 million shares exchanged compared to average daily volume of 4.2 million shares.
  • Comcast (CMCSA) down $0.64 (-1.1%) to $56.14 on heavy volume, with 14.5 million shares exchanged compared to average daily volume of 13.8 million shares.
  • Comcast market cap: $126.7 billion.
  • Twenty-First Century Fox market cap: $23.8 billion.
  • Percentage of analysts rating Comcast a buy: 95% (19 analysts).
  • Percentage of analysts rating Twenty-First Century Fox a buy: 67% (2 analysts).

Sources:

  • TheStreet Wire: "All three major indices are trading down today..."
  • TheStreet Wire: "Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. operates as a diversified media and entertainment company worldwide."
  • TheStreet Wire: "Comcast Corporation operates as a media and technology company worldwide."
  • TheStreet Wire: "TheStreet Ratings rates Comcast as a buy."

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