JMP Securities Reiterates Market Perform Rating for Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD)

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at JMP Securities in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $79.00 target price (up from $78.00) on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.20.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

Shares of BYD stock opened at $73.46 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $72.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 1.54. Boyd Gaming has a fifty-two week low of $49.34 and a fifty-two week high of $76.73.

Boyd Gaming announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Boyd Gaming

In other news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $49,948.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $452,339.36. This trade represents a 9.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Boyd sold 25,155 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total value of $1,744,499.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,487,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,190,719.50. The trade was a 1.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 147,364 shares of company stock valued at $10,590,893. Insiders own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Boyd Gaming

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 6,158.8% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 908,905 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,761,000 after purchasing an additional 894,383 shares during the period. Long Pond Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the second quarter worth $20,440,000. Ariel Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 12.5% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 3,031,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,046,000 after purchasing an additional 335,984 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Boyd Gaming by 4,816.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 184,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,320,000 after purchasing an additional 180,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldentree Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter valued at about $11,490,000. 76.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Boyd Gaming

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.