Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) Upgraded at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $54.00 price objective on the real estate investment trust's stock, up from their prior price objective of $49.00.

GLPI has been the topic of several other research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $57.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Raymond James raised their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $52.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gaming and Leisure Properties presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $52.96.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

GLPI traded up $0.29 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $50.54. 1,180,055 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,314,742. The firm has a market cap of $13.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.99. The stock's fifty day moving average is $50.64 and its 200 day moving average is $48.32. The company has a quick ratio of 11.35, a current ratio of 11.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a one year low of $41.80 and a one year high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $385.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $385.09 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 51.93%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.29%.

Insider Transactions at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total value of $151,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 146,800 shares in the company, valued at $7,397,252. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total value of $674,855.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 108,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,621,957.46. This represents a 10.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 53,758 shares of company stock valued at $2,717,922. 4.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Gaming and Leisure Properties

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2,547.6% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 556 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the second quarter worth $31,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 18,500.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 744 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 740 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 142.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 654 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

GLPI is engaged in the business of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements, pursuant to which the tenant is responsible for all facility maintenance, insurance required in connection with the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties, taxes levied on or with respect to the leased properties and all utilities and other services necessary or appropriate for the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties.