Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD Stake Lessened by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV cut its stake in Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) by 52.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,300 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $1,577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 56.8% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Boyd Gaming during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 139.9% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 619 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in Boyd Gaming during the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total value of $5,286,663.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 1,609,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $135,272,166.24. This trade represents a 3.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $8,590,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $85,640,667.90. This represents a 9.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 200,000 shares of company stock valued at $17,038,987 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 22.82% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Trading Up 1.2%

Boyd Gaming stock opened at $87.63 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $84.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.05. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a 52 week low of $73.00 and a 52 week high of $89.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.08.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.16). Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 25.63% and a net margin of 44.84%.The firm had revenue of $997.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming Corporation will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Texas Capital upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Boyd Gaming from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $92.08.

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.