Savant Capital LLC Decreases Position in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Savant Capital LLC lowered its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 9.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,704 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 790 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GLPI. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 35.9% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 26,130 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,258,000 after purchasing an additional 6,896 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 26,105 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,257,000 after acquiring an additional 6,333 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 78,064 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,760,000 after acquiring an additional 3,630 shares in the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 9,522 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $459,000 after acquiring an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 305,765 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,723,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GLPI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered Gaming and Leisure Properties from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.53 price target on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.93.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ:GLPI opened at $48.61 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $48.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.77. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.80 and a 52-week high of $52.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 11.35 and a current ratio of 11.35. The company has a market cap of $13.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.99.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is 106.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 17,617 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.40, for a total value of $870,279.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 54,140 shares in the company, valued at $2,674,516. This represents a 24.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $190,498.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 278,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,329,850.56. This represents a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,624,947 in the last 90 days. 4.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements. The company was founded on February 13, 2013 and is headquartered in Wyomissing, PA.