Dodge & Cox Acquires 5,797,299 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Dodge & Cox increased its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) by 75.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,498,634 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 5,797,299 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox owned about 4.92% of Gaming and Leisure Properties worth $650,094,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GLPI. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. CKW Financial Group raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.0% during the 4th quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 700 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 149.8% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,029 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 3rd quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 57.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,368 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total transaction of $254,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 140,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,173,098.17. The trade was a 3.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 17,617 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.40, for a total transaction of $870,279.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 54,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,674,516. The trade was a 24.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 50,933 shares of company stock valued at $2,533,487 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 4.37% of the company's stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GLPI traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $49.52. 904,292 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,918. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $49.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 11.35 and a quick ratio of 11.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.72. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 52 week low of $42.20 and a 52 week high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.65% and a return on equity of 17.41%. The business had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.54 million. Analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on GLPI shares. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $53.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.11.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in the provision of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements. The company was founded on February 13, 2013 and is headquartered in Wyomissing, PA.