Churchill Downs Incorporated Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.06 (NASDAQ:CHDN)

Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, March 18th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.06 per share on Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.21%.

Churchill Downs has increased its dividend by an average of 7.0% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 14 years. Churchill Downs has a dividend payout ratio of 5.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Churchill Downs to earn $7.88 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.41 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 5.2%.

Churchill Downs Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CHDN opened at $112.97 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.31 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.93. Churchill Downs has a 52 week low of $105.18 and a 52 week high of $150.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.57. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $119.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $131.55.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $624.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $620.21 million. Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 43.67%. Analysts forecast that Churchill Downs will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Churchill Downs declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CHDN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $166.00 price target on shares of Churchill Downs in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Churchill Downs from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Churchill Downs from $151.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Churchill Downs from $164.00 to $161.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Churchill Downs has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.38.

Churchill Downs Company Profile

Churchill Downs Incorporated operates as a racing, online wagering, and gaming entertainment company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Live and Historical Racing, TwinSpires, and Gaming. The company operates pari-mutuel gaming entertainment venues; TwinSpires, an online wagering platform for horse racing, sports, and iGaming; retail sports books; casino gaming; and Terre Haute Casino Resort.