Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Purchases 30,206 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Key Points

• Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. by 146.5% in the first quarter, now holding 50,818 shares valued at approximately $2.59 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, representing a 6.8% yield, an increase from its previous dividend of $0.76.
• GLPI's earnings report revealed a miss on EPS estimates, reporting $0.96 compared to the expected $0.97, although revenue increased 3.8% year-over-year.

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI - Free Report) by 146.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,818 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 30,206 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $2,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 64.2% in the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 545 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1,872.7% in the 1st quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 651 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on GLPI shares. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Macquarie cut their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Wedbush set a $55.00 target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gaming and Leisure Properties presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $53.16.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.54, for a total transaction of $139,620.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 133,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,234,172.62. This represents a 2.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.26% of the company's stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Price Performance

GLPI stock traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $45.98. The company had a trading volume of 222,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,811. The company has a market capitalization of $13.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82, a P/E/G ratio of 9.98 and a beta of 0.71. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $44.48 and a 12-month high of $52.60. The company has a quick ratio of 7.39, a current ratio of 7.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $46.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.99.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $394.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $397.27 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 46.32%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.94 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.8%. This is a positive change from Gaming and Leisure Properties's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Gaming and Leisure Properties's dividend payout ratio is currently 120.93%.

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.