Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $92.5833.

A number of analysts have issued reports on BYD shares. Mizuho set a $100.00 target price on Boyd Gaming in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group set a $110.00 price objective on Boyd Gaming in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Truist Financial set a $110.00 target price on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $85.00 to $84.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 9th.

Boyd Gaming Stock Down 2.3%

Boyd Gaming stock opened at $82.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.52. Boyd Gaming has a fifty-two week low of $58.94 and a fifty-two week high of $89.96. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $83.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $83.46. The firm has a market cap of $6.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.20.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.33. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 30.14% and a net margin of 45.05%.The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This is a positive change from Boyd Gaming’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is presently 3.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Stephen S. Thompson sold 19,530 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $1,632,512.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 22,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,839,732.31. This represents a 47.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 23,924 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.86, for a total transaction of $2,054,114.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 435,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,413,151.56. The trade was a 5.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 73,454 shares of company stock valued at $6,231,827. Insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BYD. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,755,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,652,000 after purchasing an additional 277,529 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 118.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,427,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,708,000 after buying an additional 773,394 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,357,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,706,000 after buying an additional 136,129 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,355,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,537,000 after buying an additional 285,719 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 679.7% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,122,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,842,000 after buying an additional 978,853 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

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.