Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on BYD. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Argus upgraded Boyd Gaming from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Boyd Gaming has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.00.

Boyd Gaming Stock Performance

BYD traded down $2.56 on Wednesday, reaching $76.86. The stock had a trading volume of 711,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 952,179. The business's 50-day moving average price is $74.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. Boyd Gaming has a 12-month low of $49.34 and a 12-month high of $80.50. The company has a market cap of $6.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.54.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.70%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Boyd Gaming's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio is currently 10.93%.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director William R. Boyd sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total transaction of $1,189,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,472,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $116,835,980.40. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $49,948.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $452,339.36. The trade was a 9.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 65,660 shares of company stock valued at $5,123,749 over the last quarter. 27.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners increased its position in Boyd Gaming by 36.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,955,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $287,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065,887 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 6,158.8% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 908,905 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,761,000 after purchasing an additional 894,383 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,553,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter worth $43,273,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,296,863 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,074,000 after buying an additional 441,963 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company's stock.

About Boyd Gaming

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.