Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD Shares Acquired by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Boyd Gaming Corporation by 39.9%, owning 42,348 shares valued at approximately $2.79 million after additional purchases in the 1st quarter.
• Boyd Gaming reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.87, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue of $1.03 billion, a 6.9% increase from the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, with an expected annual yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 11.08%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) by 39.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,348 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,070 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.05% of Boyd Gaming worth $2,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 13.3% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,048,706 shares of the company's stock worth $69,036,000 after purchasing an additional 122,822 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 0.9% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 983,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $64,765,000 after buying an additional 8,850 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 1.1% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 692,496 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,587,000 after buying an additional 7,400 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 597,431 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,338,000 after buying an additional 77,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 0.8% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 471,822 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,060,000 after buying an additional 3,686 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, COO Ted Bogich sold 16,497 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.18, for a total transaction of $1,372,220.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 45,116 shares in the company, valued at $3,752,748.88. The trade was a 26.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.09, for a total transaction of $4,154,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,096,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at $91,123,889.01. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 285,438 shares of company stock worth $23,976,085 over the last ninety days. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

BYD traded down $1.03 on Friday, reaching $85.83. 577,003 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,048,557. The stock has a market cap of $6.88 billion, a PE ratio of 13.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.24. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a twelve month low of $57.67 and a twelve month high of $87.83. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $82.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

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

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BYD shares. Susquehanna cut shares of Boyd Gaming from a "positive" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $86.00 in a report on Friday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $79.00 target price on the stock. Macquarie lifted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated a "sell" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.62.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

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.