Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $54.15.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GLPI. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays began coverage on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.53 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Up 0.2 %

GLPI stock opened at $49.92 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $48.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.77. The company has a market cap of $13.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.99. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a fifty-two week low of $41.80 and a fifty-two week high of $52.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 11.35 and a current ratio of 11.35.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.54 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.65% and a return on equity of 17.41%. As a group, analysts forecast 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 paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s payout ratio is currently 105.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,149 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.80, for a total transaction of $54,922.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 91,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,379,436. This represents a 1.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $190,498.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 278,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,329,850.56. This trade represents a 1.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,873,547 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Gaming and Leisure Properties

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GLPI. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the third quarter worth about $693,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 76.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 32,316 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,646,000 after purchasing an additional 13,965 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 522,197 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,867,000 after purchasing an additional 51,398 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 87.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 14,410 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $741,000 after purchasing an additional 6,724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 4th quarter valued at $526,000. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in 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.