Short Interest in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Expands By 10.0%

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,630,000 shares, a growth of 10.0% from the July 31st total of 5,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,290,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GLPI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $57.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $52.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Brandon John Moore sold 30,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,546,545.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 208,977 shares in the company, valued at $10,459,298.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,605 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total value of $274,028.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 156,685 shares in the company, valued at $7,660,329.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 30,900 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total transaction of $1,546,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 208,977 shares in the company, valued at $10,459,298.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gaming and Leisure Properties

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GLPI. Ignite Planners LLC grew its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 12,181 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 0.7% during the second quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 33,990 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,537,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.2% during the first quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 19,068 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $878,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 90,749 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,103,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Securian Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,534 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,112,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.14% of the company's stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Price Performance

Shares of GLPI stock traded up $0.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $52.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,206,846 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,253,459. The firm's 50-day moving average is $48.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.86. The company has a market cap of $14.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.98. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 1-year low of $41.80 and a 1-year high of $52.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 5.91 and a current ratio of 5.91.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $380.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.95 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 52.79% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.84%. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio is 112.18%.

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.