Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $91.64.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BYD shares. Argus upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Boyd Gaming from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Boyd Gaming from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BYD opened at $72.54 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $72.03 and a 200 day moving average of $63.74. 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 stock has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.84, a P/E/G ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 1.54. Boyd Gaming has a 12 month low of $49.34 and a 12 month high of $76.73.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is presently 12.98%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William R. Boyd sold 25,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total transaction of $1,744,499.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,487,970 shares in the company, valued at $103,190,719.50. This represents a 1.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total transaction of $2,939,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,161,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,336,734.98. This trade represents a 3.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 147,364 shares of company stock valued at $10,590,893. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BYD. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 54.9% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 587 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 150.1% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 921.8% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 85.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 943 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares during the period. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Boyd Gaming

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.