JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 93,874 Shares of Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 6.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,458,296 shares of the company's stock after selling 93,874 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 1.65% of Boyd Gaming worth $94,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BYD. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Boyd Gaming during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 54.9% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 587 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 150.1% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Boyd Gaming by 921.8% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 889 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 85.3% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 943 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director William R. Boyd sold 25,155 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total value of $1,744,499.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,487,970 shares in the company, valued at $103,190,719.50. This trade represents a 1.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $49,948.80. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 147,364 shares of company stock valued at $10,590,893 in the last quarter. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BYD shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on Boyd Gaming from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Argus upgraded shares of 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. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $91.67.

Boyd Gaming Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of BYD stock traded up $1.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $72.92. 756,840 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 769,220. The business has a 50 day moving average of $72.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.11. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 52 week low of $49.34 and a 52 week high of $76.73. The company has a market capitalization of $6.45 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92, a PEG ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 1.54. 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 announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.98%.

Boyd Gaming 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.