Atria Investments Inc Increases Stock Position in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 16.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,668 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,710 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $1,012,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 1st quarter worth about $2,396,000. Lasalle Investment Management Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.5% in the first quarter. Lasalle Investment Management Securities LLC now owns 1,479,756 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $68,172,000 after purchasing an additional 21,667 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,165,000. Caxton Associates LP raised its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 72.5% during the 1st quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 24,282 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,119,000 after buying an additional 10,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 239,225 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $11,020,000 after buying an additional 11,387 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, COO Brandon John Moore sold 30,900 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.05, for a total value of $1,546,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 208,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,459,298.85. The trade was a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total value of $674,855.46. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 108,073 shares in the company, valued at $5,621,957.46. The trade was a 10.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,758 shares of company stock valued at $2,717,922. 4.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $52.00 price objective (up previously from $51.00) on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Raymond James increased their price target 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. Finally, 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.54.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ GLPI opened at $49.19 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $13.50 billion, a PE ratio of 17.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.99. 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. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $50.74 and its 200 day moving average is $48.22.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.25). Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $385.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $385.09 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.18%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.