Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Receives $53.96 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $53.96.

A number of research firms have recently commented on GLPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered Gaming and Leisure Properties from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,138 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.45, for a total transaction of $57,412.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 53,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,673,950.90. The trade was a 2.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total value of $254,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 140,953 shares in the company, valued at $7,173,098.17. This trade represents a 3.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 56,064 shares of company stock valued at $2,778,908 in the last 90 days. 4.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 510,509 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,586,000 after acquiring an additional 55,230 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,330 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $594,000 after acquiring an additional 744 shares during the period. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,234,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 182,164 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,773,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the period. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Price Performance

Shares of GLPI opened at $50.99 on Tuesday. 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 has a 1 year low of $41.80 and a 1 year high of $52.60. The stock has a market cap of $14.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $49.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.78.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 51.65%. The firm had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.54 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.92%.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Company Profile

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in the provision of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements. The company was founded on February 13, 2013 and is headquartered in Wyomissing, PA.