Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Buys 102,858 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) by 147.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 172,850 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 102,858 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.06% of Gaming and Leisure Properties worth $8,893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ignite Planners LLC increased its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 12,181 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 33,990 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,537,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC boosted 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 purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,948 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 20,917 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,076,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total value of $674,855.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,621,957.46. The trade was a 10.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 6,885 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.16, for a total transaction of $345,351.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 149,800 shares in the company, valued at $7,513,968. This trade represents a 4.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,858 shares of company stock valued at $1,171,377. 4.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $52.00 target price (up from $51.00) on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $57.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $52.96.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

Shares of GLPI stock opened at $50.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.97 billion, a PE ratio of 17.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.35. The company has a current ratio of 11.35, a quick ratio of 11.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.80 and a 12 month high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $385.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $385.09 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. Analysts forecast that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio is 106.29%.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Profile

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.