Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Downgraded to Equal Weight Rating by Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research note published on Monday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $81.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $82.00.

BYD has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Argus upgraded Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on Boyd Gaming from $69.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Boyd Gaming presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.20.

Boyd Gaming Trading Down 0.5 %

BYD stock opened at $76.47 on Monday. Boyd Gaming has a 52-week low of $49.34 and a 52-week high of $80.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The firm has a market cap of $6.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.54. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.18.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.21. Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 35.97% and a net margin of 14.70%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming will post 6.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Boyd Gaming’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.58%.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William R. Boyd sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total transaction of $1,189,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,472,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,835,980.40. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $49,948.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,977 shares in the company, valued at $452,339.36. The trade was a 9.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 65,660 shares of company stock valued at $5,123,749. 27.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BYD. Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 5,265,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $381,929,000 after buying an additional 21,616 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Boyd Gaming by 36.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,955,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $287,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065,887 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,108,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $136,680,000 after acquiring an additional 17,591 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,296,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,074,000 after acquiring an additional 441,963 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Boyd Gaming by 3.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,611,000 after purchasing an additional 33,379 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

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.