Foster & Motley Inc. Increases Stock Position in Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

Foster & Motley Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) by 19.5% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 98,730 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,119 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $8,114,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BYD. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 56.8% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 139.9% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 619 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BYD. Barclays dropped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Benchmark initiated coverage on Boyd Gaming in a research note on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Boyd Gaming from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.69.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In other news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total value of $5,286,663.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,609,808 shares in the company, valued at $135,272,166.24. The trade was a 3.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $8,590,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $85,640,667.90. This trade represents a 9.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 200,000 shares of company stock worth $17,038,987. Insiders own 22.82% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE BYD opened at $88.57 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $84.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.44. The company has a market cap of $6.58 billion, a PE ratio of 3.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.08. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a 52-week low of $76.33 and a 52-week high of $90.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.60.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $997.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 44.84% and a return on equity of 25.63%. Boyd Gaming’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.62 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Boyd Gaming Corporation will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.51%.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) is a diversified hospitality and gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company develops, owns and operates a portfolio of branded gaming and entertainment properties, including casinos, hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities. Boyd Gaming’s offerings range from slot machines and table games to live entertainment, dining concepts and convention space, designed to appeal to both regional and destination visitors.

Founded in 1975 by its namesake, William S.