Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is mixed on Boyd Gaming, with 17 covering firms assigning an overall “Hold” consensus rating. The average 12-month price target is about $93.15.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including CEO Keith Smith and Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson. In total, insiders sold 200,000 shares worth about $17.0 million in the last quarter.
• The company recently missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $1.60 versus $1.76 expected and revenue of $997.36 million versus $1.04 billion expected. Boyd Gaming also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share and a $500 million stock buyback program.

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the seventeen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $93.1538.

A number of research firms have weighed in on BYD. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $87.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley restated a "mixed" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $8,590,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 996,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,640,667.90. The trade was a 9.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total value of $5,286,663.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 1,609,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $135,272,166.24. This represents a 3.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 200,000 shares of company stock worth $17,038,987 in the last quarter. Insiders own 22.82% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 23.0% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 653 shares of the company's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Boyd Gaming by 9.1% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,553 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Optas LLC increased its stake in Boyd Gaming by 4.1% in the first quarter. Optas LLC now owns 3,486 shares of the company's stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 54.3% in the first quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 452 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 854 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Boyd Gaming Trading Down 0.2%

BYD opened at $87.77 on Friday. Boyd Gaming has a one year low of $76.33 and a one year high of $91.00. The company has a market cap of $6.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.85, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.60. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $84.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.69.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $997.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.04 billion. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 25.63% and a net margin of 44.84%.Boyd Gaming's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Boyd Gaming will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.51%.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation NYSE: BYD is a diversified hospitality and gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company develops, owns and operates a portfolio of branded gaming and entertainment properties, including casinos, hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities. Boyd Gaming's offerings range from slot machines and table games to live entertainment, dining concepts and convention space, designed to appeal to both regional and destination visitors.

Founded in 1975 by its namesake, William S.

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