Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 197,118 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,156 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.27% of Churchill Downs worth $27,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Churchill Downs by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 80,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,274,000 after buying an additional 32,225 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Churchill Downs by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $986,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Churchill Downs by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 818 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Churchill Downs in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,658,000. Finally, RPS Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Churchill Downs during the 2nd quarter valued at about $649,000. 82.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CHDN shares. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $166.00 price target on shares of Churchill Downs in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Churchill Downs from $157.00 to $151.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 price objective (down previously from $166.00) on shares of Churchill Downs in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.88.

Churchill Downs Price Performance

CHDN opened at $129.55 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $9.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $139.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $138.57. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a 1 year low of $111.10 and a 1 year high of $150.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.55.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $628.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $627.90 million. Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 45.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.409 dividend. This is a positive change from Churchill Downs’s previous annual dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.29%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.29%.

Churchill Downs Profile

Churchill Downs Incorporated operates as a racing, online wagering, and gaming entertainment company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Live and Historical Racing, TwinSpires, and Gaming. The company operates pari-mutuel gaming entertainment venues; TwinSpires, an online wagering platform for horse racing, sports, and iGaming; retail sports books; casino gaming; and Terre Haute Casino Resort.