VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Invests $1.92 Million in Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems bought a new position in Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter, purchasing 22,550 shares valued at about $1.92 million.
• Boyd Gaming reported mixed quarterly results, with earnings of $1.60 per share missing estimates and revenue of $997.36 million coming in below expectations, though revenue still rose slightly year over year.
• The company announced a $500 million share buyback and a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, while analysts currently maintain an average Hold rating and a price target of $92.08.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 22,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,922,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versor Investments LP raised its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 180.4% during the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 23,584 shares of the company's stock worth $2,010,000 after purchasing an additional 15,173 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 89.1% during the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 4,925 shares of the company's stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 2,321 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter worth about $205,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter worth about $269,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 81,723 shares of the company's stock worth $6,966,000 after purchasing an additional 2,165 shares in the last quarter. 76.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Boyd Gaming Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of BYD stock opened at $79.01 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $83.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.60. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a twelve month low of $72.01 and a twelve month high of $89.96. The company has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.46, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Boyd Gaming's payout ratio is currently 3.51%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Boyd Gaming from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued a "mixed" rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $92.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director William R. Boyd sold 30,000 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total value of $2,545,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,930,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at $163,779,123.48. The trade was a 1.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 23,924 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.86, for a total value of $2,054,114.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 435,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,413,151.56. This represents a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 173,454 shares of company stock valued at $14,680,814. Corporate insiders own 22.82% of the company's stock.

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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