Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $3.18 Million Stock Holdings in Golden Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:GDEN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in Golden Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:GDEN) by 6.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 100,041 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,910 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Golden Entertainment were worth $3,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Golden Entertainment by 132.1% during the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,486,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,251,000 after purchasing an additional 846,269 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Golden Entertainment by 4.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 587,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,664,000 after buying an additional 24,264 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its holdings in Golden Entertainment by 24.5% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 352,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,197,000 after buying an additional 69,207 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Golden Entertainment by 16.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 278,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,860,000 after acquiring an additional 38,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bernzott Capital Advisors lifted its stake in Golden Entertainment by 7.9% in the third quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors now owns 247,632 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,872,000 after acquiring an additional 18,233 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.73% of the company’s stock.

Golden Entertainment Price Performance

Golden Entertainment stock opened at $31.40 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $861.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.32 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Golden Entertainment, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.42 and a 12 month high of $40.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $32.25 and its 200-day moving average is $31.25.

Golden Entertainment Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Golden Entertainment’s dividend payout ratio is 80.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Golden Entertainment from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Golden Entertainment in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Golden Entertainment from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. B. Riley reduced their target price on Golden Entertainment from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Macquarie dropped their price target on Golden Entertainment from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Terrence Wright sold 16,586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.26, for a total value of $518,478.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 61,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,926,116.16. The trade was a 21.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Golden Entertainment Profile

Golden Entertainment, Inc owns and operates a diversified entertainment platform in the United States. The company operates through four segments; Nevada Casino Resorts, Nevada Locals Casinos, Nevada Taverns, and Distributed Gaming. It also operates casino, casino resorts, and taverns; and slot machines in third party non-casino locations.