PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) Given “Buy” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) in a report issued on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $26.00 price objective on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Macquarie reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of PENN Entertainment in a report on Friday, August 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of PENN Entertainment from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on PENN Entertainment from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Craig Hallum upgraded PENN Entertainment from a hold rating to a buy rating and boosted their price target for the company from $20.00 to $30.00 in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of PENN Entertainment in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $23.77.

PENN Entertainment Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PENN opened at $18.52 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $18.81 and a 200 day moving average of $18.05. The company has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of -2.49 and a beta of 2.10. PENN Entertainment has a 12-month low of $13.50 and a 12-month high of $27.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.35.

PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.27) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.65 billion. PENN Entertainment had a negative net margin of 19.48% and a negative return on equity of 7.13%. PENN Entertainment’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.48 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that PENN Entertainment will post -1.32 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David A. Handler purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.51 per share, with a total value of $175,100.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 293,450 shares in the company, valued at $5,138,309.50. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director David A. Handler acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $17.51 per share, for a total transaction of $175,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 293,450 shares in the company, valued at $5,138,309.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Anuj Dhanda purchased 15,000 shares of PENN Entertainment stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $18.40 per share, for a total transaction of $276,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,523 shares in the company, valued at $580,023.20. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders bought 79,200 shares of company stock worth $1,450,548. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PENN Entertainment

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in PENN Entertainment by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association boosted its position in PENN Entertainment by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 12,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 712 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of PENN Entertainment by 6.0% in the second quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 720 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of PENN Entertainment by 2.5% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 38,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $743,000 after buying an additional 944 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of PENN Entertainment by 233.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,009 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

PENN Entertainment Company Profile

PENN Entertainment, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming experiences. The company operates through five segments: Northeast, South, West, Midwest, and Interactive. It operates online sports betting in various jurisdictions; and iCasino under Hollywood Casino, L'Auberge, ESPN BET, and theScore Bet Sportsbook and Casino brands.