BNP Paribas Financial Markets Grows Position in Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its Boyd Gaming stake by 367.9% in the fourth quarter, while several other institutional investors also increased or initiated positions. Overall, institutional investors now own 76.81% of the company.
• Boyd Gaming insiders have been selling shares recently, including CEO Keith Smith and Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson. Insiders sold a total of 200,000 shares worth about $17.0 million over the last quarter.
• The company reported Q1 earnings of $1.60 per share, missing analyst expectations, but it also authorized a $500 million stock buyback and will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share on July 15.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 367.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 135,930 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 106,878 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.17% of Boyd Gaming worth $11,587,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 94.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 229,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,868,000 after buying an additional 111,815 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 127,303 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,005,000 after buying an additional 55,923 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,073,000. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter valued at about $13,313,000. Finally, ING Groep NV purchased a new stake in Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,354,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $8,590,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,981 shares in the company, valued at $85,640,667.90. This represents a 9.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total value of $5,286,663.42. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,609,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $135,272,166.24. The trade was a 3.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 200,000 shares of company stock valued at $17,038,987 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 22.82% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Boyd Gaming from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Boyd Gaming from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Texas Capital upgraded Boyd Gaming to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Boyd Gaming has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $92.08.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BYD opened at $87.78 on Monday. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a twelve month low of $73.00 and a twelve month high of $89.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a market capitalization of $6.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $83.93.

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

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

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Boyd Gaming's payout ratio is 3.51%.

About Boyd Gaming

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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