Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Given New $88.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $88.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price suggests a potential upside of 13.15% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Mizuho upped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Argus upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Boyd Gaming from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $73.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price target on Boyd Gaming from $69.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

NYSE BYD traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $77.78. 756,337 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 963,922. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $74.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.75. Boyd Gaming has a 1-year low of $49.34 and a 1-year high of $80.50. The company has a market cap of $6.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 1.54.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 35.97%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Boyd Gaming will post 6.57 EPS for the current year.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $49,948.80. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $452,339.36. The trade was a 9.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $2,164,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,101,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,451,724.30. This trade represents a 2.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 100,660 shares of company stock valued at $7,307,149. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Boyd Gaming

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. AXQ Capital LP purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the fourth quarter worth $674,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 439,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,849,000 after acquiring an additional 28,038 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,968,000. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,955,544 shares of the company's stock worth $287,185,000 after buying an additional 1,065,887 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GWN Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming in the 4th quarter worth $234,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The company operates through Las Vegas Locals, Downtown Las Vegas, Midwest & South, and Online segments.