Choreo LLC Reduces Position in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

Choreo LLC decreased its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 29,893 shares of the company’s stock after selling 851 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $2,164,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BYD. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Boyd Gaming by 36.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $357,000 after buying an additional 1,749 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its position in Boyd Gaming by 61.3% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $439,000 after buying an additional 3,025 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional grew its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 10.7% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 16,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after purchasing an additional 1,568 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 5.8% in the third quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 8,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming in the third quarter valued at $201,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of BYD opened at $78.43 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $74.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.37. The stock has a market cap of $6.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.97, a P/E/G ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 1.54. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 12 month low of $49.34 and a 12 month high of $78.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.10% and a net margin of 13.01%. Equities analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming Co. will post 6.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.98%.

Boyd Gaming announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on BYD shares. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective (up previously from $78.00) on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com raised Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $93.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total value of $49,948.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $452,339.36. The trade was a 9.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total value of $2,939,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,161,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,336,734.98. This trade represents a 3.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 100,660 shares of company stock worth $7,307,149. 28.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

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.