Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Hits New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Friday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $70.00 to $71.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Boyd Gaming traded as high as $70.07 and last traded at $68.72, with a volume of 197483 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $64.31.

BYD has been the subject of a number of other reports. StockNews.com raised Boyd Gaming from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Boyd Gaming from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Macquarie decreased their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Boyd Gaming presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,242 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.36, for a total value of $74,967.12. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,096 shares in the company, valued at $66,154.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 73,130 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.23, for a total transaction of $4,404,619.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,423,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $85,737,284.54. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,242 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.36, for a total transaction of $74,967.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,096 shares in the company, valued at $66,154.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 57.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 518 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Boyd Gaming by 58.2% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 783 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Boyd Gaming in the 1st quarter valued at about $90,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 132.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares in the last quarter. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $6.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $62.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.44.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $967.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $909.49 million. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 34.29% and a net margin of 13.32%. Boyd Gaming's revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Boyd Gaming's payout ratio is currently 12.21%.

Boyd Gaming Company 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.