BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Acquires 7,674 Shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

Key Points

• BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its stake in Boyd Gaming Corporation by 97.5% during the 1st quarter, now owning a total of 15,546 shares valued at approximately $1,023,000.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Boyd Gaming, with Mizuho setting a new target of $89.00 and others following suit, reflecting a generally positive outlook.
• Insiders sold a significant amount of stock recently, including Director William R. Boyd who sold 9,774 shares, leading to a 39.16% decrease in his ownership of the company.

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 97.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,546 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,674 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $1,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 1st quarter valued at $598,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 692,496 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,587,000 after purchasing an additional 7,400 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 1st quarter valued at $1,963,000. LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 115,799 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,623,000 after purchasing an additional 3,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 1st quarter worth $805,000. Institutional investors own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In related news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.17, for a total transaction of $8,417,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,504,379 shares in the company, valued at $126,623,580.43. This represents a 6.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 40,035 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.41, for a total transaction of $3,419,389.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 420,185 shares in the company, valued at $35,888,000.85. This represents a 8.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 285,438 shares of company stock valued at $23,976,085. 21.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Boyd Gaming Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Boyd Gaming stock traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $87.31. The company had a trading volume of 477,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,051,658. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a 52-week low of $57.67 and a 52-week high of $87.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average of $82.19 and a 200 day moving average of $74.92.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $976.81 million. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 40.65% and a net margin of 14.02%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.58 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Boyd Gaming Corporation will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Boyd Gaming's dividend payout ratio is currently 11.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on BYD shares. Susquehanna lowered shares of Boyd Gaming from a "positive" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $86.00 in a report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Boyd Gaming in a report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $79.00 price target on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $73.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a report on Friday, July 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Boyd Gaming currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.62.

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.