Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $3.71 Million Stock Position in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 13.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 8,700 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $3,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the second quarter worth $31,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 416.7% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 744 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 18,500.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 744 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 578.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 692 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

GLPI opened at $51.01 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $50.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.99. 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 1.49, a quick ratio of 5.91 and a current ratio of 5.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.82, a PEG ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.99.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.15). Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 52.79%. The company had revenue of $380.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.96%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 112.18%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,605 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total transaction of $274,028.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 156,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,660,329.65. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total value of $274,028.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 156,685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,660,329.65. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total value of $674,855.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 108,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,621,957.46. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 49,478 shares of company stock valued at $2,495,429. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GLPI shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $53.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Friday, June 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $52.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.18.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Company Profile

GLPI is engaged in the business of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements, pursuant to which the tenant is responsible for all facility maintenance, insurance required in connection with the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties, taxes levied on or with respect to the leased properties and all utilities and other services necessary or appropriate for the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties.