Vista Investment Management Trims Holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Vista Investment Management cut its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,024 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. Vista Investment Management’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $386,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GLPI. Barclays PLC grew its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 129.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 896,831 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,142,000 after buying an additional 505,382 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the fourth quarter worth about $526,000. HB Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the fourth quarter worth about $211,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 57.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,368 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,455 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GLPI shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wedbush set a $55.00 price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Macquarie reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $56.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,903 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.99, for a total transaction of $98,936.97. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 41,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,147,083.02. This represents a 4.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total value of $254,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 140,953 shares in the company, valued at $7,173,098.17. This trade represents a 3.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 22,842 shares of company stock worth $1,153,961. Company insiders own 4.26% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Trading Down 0.2%

GLPI opened at $47.51 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 11.35 and a quick ratio of 11.35. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a one year low of $42.86 and a one year high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96. The business had revenue of $395.24 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.27 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 51.65%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. Analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is an increase from Gaming and Leisure Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.57%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is 108.19%.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Company Profile

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in the provision of 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.