AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 47,447 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

AQR Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) by 22.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 164,775 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 47,447 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.06% of Gaming and Leisure Properties worth $7,903,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. CKW Financial Group boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.0% in the 4th quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 700 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 52.5% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 979 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 149.8% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,029 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the third quarter worth $66,000. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total transaction of $254,450.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 140,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,173,098.17. This trade represents a 3.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,138 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.45, for a total value of $57,412.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 53,002 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,673,950.90. This trade represents a 2.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 22,842 shares of company stock worth $1,153,961 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 4.37% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GLPI. Barclays raised their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wedbush set a $55.00 price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Gaming and Leisure Properties presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $54.70.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

Shares of GLPI traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $46.53. 227,421 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,267,310. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 11.35 and a quick ratio of 11.35. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a twelve month low of $42.86 and a twelve month high of $52.60. The business's 50-day moving average price is $48.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.04. The company has a market capitalization of $12.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.15, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.81.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.96. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 51.65%. The firm had revenue of $395.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $396.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio is currently 108.19%.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in the provision of 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.