Hancock Whitney Corp Buys New Shares in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

Hancock Whitney Corp bought a new position in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 6,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $475,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BYD. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Boyd Gaming by 80.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 393 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 3rd quarter valued at about $64,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 4th quarter valued at about $67,000. Finally, Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming in the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.68, for a total value of $3,884,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,346,628 shares in the company, valued at $104,606,063.04. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.28, for a total transaction of $84,690.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $365,258.56. This trade represents a 18.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 66,125 shares of company stock valued at $5,158,490 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 27.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on BYD shares. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $78.00 to $73.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Boyd Gaming from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.07.

Boyd Gaming Stock Performance

NYSE:BYD traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $69.24. 926,961 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 962,247. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 1 year low of $49.34 and a 1 year high of $80.50. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.31.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $991.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $976.38 million. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.70%. The firm's revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.51 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Boyd Gaming's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Boyd Gaming's payout ratio is currently 11.75%.

About Boyd Gaming

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.