Crestline Management LP Invests $1.94 Million in Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN)

Crestline Management LP purchased a new position in Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 14,490 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,935,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CHDN. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in Churchill Downs by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,724,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems boosted its position in shares of Churchill Downs by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 3,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Churchill Downs by 127.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 184 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Churchill Downs by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,559,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in Churchill Downs by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,252 shares of the company's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 82.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Douglas C. Grissom bought 10,000 shares of Churchill Downs stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $92.77 per share, for a total transaction of $927,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 38,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,605,877.13. This trade represents a 34.64% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director R Alex Rankin purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $92.65 per share, for a total transaction of $185,300.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 99,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,173,461.80. This represents a 2.06% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 5.34% of the company's stock.

Churchill Downs Trading Down 0.3%

CHDN stock traded down $0.32 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $97.84. The company had a trading volume of 280,039 shares, compared to its average volume of 743,095. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a 52-week low of $85.58 and a 52-week high of $150.21. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.23, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $642.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $649.68 million. Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 43.67%. The business's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Churchill Downs Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.25%. Churchill Downs's payout ratio is 7.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CHDN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Macquarie dropped their price objective on shares of Churchill Downs from $172.00 to $154.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. StockNews.com raised Churchill Downs from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Churchill Downs from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $142.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $144.00 price target on shares of Churchill Downs in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Churchill Downs presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.50.

Churchill Downs Profile

Churchill Downs Incorporated operates as a racing, online wagering, and gaming entertainment company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Live and Historical Racing, TwinSpires, and Gaming. The company operates pari-mutuel gaming entertainment venues; TwinSpires, an online wagering platform for horse racing, sports, and iGaming; retail sports books; casino gaming; and Terre Haute Casino Resort.