Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) is Bwcp LP's Largest Position

Bwcp LP reduced its stake in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 489,369 shares of the company's stock after selling 66,571 shares during the quarter. Boyd Gaming comprises 7.6% of Bwcp LP's holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Bwcp LP owned about 0.55% of Boyd Gaming worth $35,499,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 36.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,955,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $287,185,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065,887 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter valued at about $55,553,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter worth about $43,273,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,296,863 shares of the company's stock worth $94,074,000 after acquiring an additional 441,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 37.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 964,051 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,932,000 after purchasing an additional 261,443 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on BYD. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $83.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.07.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.28, for a total transaction of $84,690.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $365,258.56. This trade represents a 18.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.68, for a total transaction of $3,884,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,346,628 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $104,606,063.04. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 66,125 shares of company stock worth $5,158,490. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

BYD stock traded down $0.89 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $69.19. 503,374 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 951,699. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $67.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $71.42. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 52-week low of $49.34 and a 52-week high of $80.50. The company has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.12, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.10. Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 35.97%. The firm had revenue of $991.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $976.38 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from Boyd Gaming's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.75%.

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.