Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Earns Outperform Rating from Analysts at Raymond James

Raymond James began coverage on shares of Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock.

BYD has been the topic of several other research reports. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Boyd Gaming from a buy rating to a hold rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $71.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $71.00 to $65.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Boyd Gaming from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Boyd Gaming has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $91.42.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

BYD stock opened at $51.51 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $60.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.50. Boyd Gaming has a 52-week low of $51.45 and a 52-week high of $73.00. The company has a market capitalization of $4.89 billion, a PE ratio of 9.25 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.06). Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 14.91% and a return on equity of 34.76%. The company had revenue of $960.52 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $947.26 million. Analysts predict that Boyd Gaming will post 6.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.21%.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Boyd Gaming

In other news, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 22,654 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.75, for a total value of $1,466,846.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 415,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,883,164. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 22,654 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.75, for a total value of $1,466,846.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 415,184 shares in the company, valued at $26,883,164. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder William S. Boyd sold 63,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.12, for a total value of $4,005,847.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,795,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $555,168,740.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 463,618 shares of company stock valued at $29,564,319. Company insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BYD. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 3.3% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 146,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,930,000 after buying an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 2.2% during the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 12,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $746,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 5,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Dorsey Wright & Associates purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,221,000. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,161,000 after buying an additional 983 shares during the period. 76.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.