Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) by 43.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,488 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,705 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $253,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Boyd Gaming by 80.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 393 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its position in Boyd Gaming by 150.1% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Boyd Gaming during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on BYD. StockNews.com lowered Boyd Gaming from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Boyd Gaming from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $81.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William R. Boyd sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total transaction of $1,189,800.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,472,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $116,835,980.40. This represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.68, for a total value of $3,884,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,346,628 shares in the company, valued at $104,606,063.04. This trade represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 66,125 shares of company stock valued at $5,158,490. Corporate insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

Shares of Boyd Gaming stock opened at $66.25 on Friday. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 12 month low of $49.34 and a 12 month high of $80.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.65, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.55.

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

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This is a positive change from Boyd Gaming’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is presently 11.58%.

Boyd Gaming announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.