KBC Group NV Sells 209,614 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) by 80.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,005 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 209,614 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $2,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 13,498,634 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $650,094,000 after buying an additional 5,797,299 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,830,944 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $617,938,000 after buying an additional 571,720 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,245,884 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $300,395,000 after buying an additional 165,024 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 4th quarter worth $176,123,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 48.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,873,006 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $138,364,000 after buying an additional 933,842 shares during the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock traded down $0.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $48.21. 985,581 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,342,846. The stock has a market cap of $13.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.15, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 4.12 and a current ratio of 4.12. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a twelve month low of $44.45 and a twelve month high of $52.60. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $46.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.09.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.02% and a net margin of 50.41%. The company had revenue of $395.24 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.27 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This is a positive change from Gaming and Leisure Properties's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.47%. Gaming and Leisure Properties's payout ratio is 111.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GLPI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $56.00 to $54.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $49.00 to $48.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Mizuho decreased their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gaming and Leisure Properties presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $54.17.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.58, for a total value of $186,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 136,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,379,270.74. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 4.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in the provision of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements. The company was founded on February 13, 2013 and is headquartered in Wyomissing, PA.