Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.93.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on GLPI shares. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $54.53 price target on the stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

GLPI stock traded up $1.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $49.62. 1,107,666 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,057,992. The firm has a market cap of $13.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.99. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 1-year low of $41.80 and a 1-year high of $52.60. 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 stock's fifty day simple moving average is $48.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.78.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $385.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 earned $0.92 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.13%. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio is currently 106.29%.

Insider Transactions at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 6,885 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.16, for a total value of $345,351.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 149,800 shares in the company, valued at $7,513,968. This trade represents a 4.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,149 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.80, for a total transaction of $54,922.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 91,620 shares in the company, valued at $4,379,436. The trade was a 1.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,490 shares of company stock worth $1,251,189 over the last ninety days. 4.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2,547.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 556 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 142.2% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 654 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 578.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 692 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. CKW Financial Group increased its position 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 3,191.3% during the 3rd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 757 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.14% of the company's stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Company Profile

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in 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.