Swiss National Bank Reduces Holdings in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

Swiss National Bank cut its stake in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 135,300 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,700 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.15% of Boyd Gaming worth $9,815,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of BYD. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 80.3% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 393 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 150.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming in the third quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. 76.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho raised their target price on Boyd Gaming from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Argus raised Boyd Gaming from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.20.

Remove Ads

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.28, for a total value of $84,690.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,852 shares in the company, valued at $365,258.56. The trade was a 18.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Boyd sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total transaction of $1,189,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,472,970 shares in the company, valued at $116,835,980.40. This represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 66,125 shares of company stock worth $5,158,490. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

BYD traded up $0.14 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $68.44. 725,148 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 976,117. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The company has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 11.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.55. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $74.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.89. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 1 year low of $49.34 and a 1 year high of $80.50.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. This is a boost from Boyd Gaming's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio is 11.58%.

Boyd Gaming announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.