Rep. James Comer Buys Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) Stock

Representative James Comer (R-Kentucky) recently bought shares of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN). In a filing disclosed on January 10th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Churchill Downs stock on January 2nd.

Representative James Comer also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Dover (NYSE:DOV) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Home Depot (NYSE:HD) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Amphenol (NYSE:APH) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) on 1/2/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) on 1/2/2025.

Churchill Downs Stock Performance

CHDN remained flat at $128.95 during trading on Wednesday. 40,645 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 366,582. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a twelve month low of $111.10 and a twelve month high of $150.21. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $136.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $137.82.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. Churchill Downs had a return on equity of 45.48% and a net margin of 15.45%. The firm had revenue of $628.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $627.90 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect 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 was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.409 per share. This represents a yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from Churchill Downs’s previous annual dividend of $0.38. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $166.00 target price on shares of Churchill Downs in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Churchill Downs from $157.00 to $151.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 target price (down previously from $166.00) on shares of Churchill Downs in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $160.88.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Churchill Downs in the second quarter valued at $125,418,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its position in Churchill Downs by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 763,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,241,000 after purchasing an additional 381,754 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new position in Churchill Downs during the 3rd quarter worth $18,368,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Churchill Downs by 5.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,078,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,971,000 after purchasing an additional 114,018 shares during the period. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Churchill Downs in the third quarter valued at about $15,231,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.59% of the company’s stock.

About Representative Comer

James Comer Jr. (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District. He assumed office on November 14, 2016. His current term ends on January 3, 2025. Comer (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022. Prior to serving in Congress, Comer was the Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture from 2012 to 2016, and the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2001 to 2012. He also unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Kentucky in 2015. A writer for the Louisville Courier-Journal called Comer “instrumental in the final passage of a five-year farm bill,” noting that he served on the conference committee that produced the final version of the bill. Comer is from Tompkinsville, Ky. He acted as the director of South Central Bank for 12 years and has been the co-owner of the Comer Land and Cattle Company. He previously served as president of CFB Foods Incorporated from 2001 to 2003 and president of Comer and Polston Insurance Incorporated from 1993 to 1995.

Churchill Downs Company 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.