Corebridge Financial Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

Corebridge Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 74,992 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,391 shares during the quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc.’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $5,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 80.3% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 393 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Boyd Gaming by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its position in Boyd Gaming by 150.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter worth approximately $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

NYSE BYD opened at $66.25 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.65, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 12-month low of $49.34 and a 12-month high of $80.50.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.70%. Analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This is a positive change from Boyd Gaming’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director William R. Boyd sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total value of $1,189,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,472,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,835,980.40. This represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,125 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.28, for a total value of $84,690.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $365,258.56. This trade represents a 18.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 66,125 shares of company stock worth $5,158,490 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on BYD shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays increased their price target on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna raised shares of Boyd Gaming from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $79.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.20.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The company operates through Las Vegas Locals, Downtown Las Vegas, Midwest & South, and Online segments.