Analysts Set Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) Price Target at $92.08

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $92.0833.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $99.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $95.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total transaction of $5,286,663.42. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,609,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $135,272,166.24. This represents a 3.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $8,590,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,981 shares in the company, valued at $85,640,667.90. This represents a 9.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 200,000 shares of company stock worth $17,038,987 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 22.82% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Boyd Gaming

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 56.8% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 62.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Boyd Gaming Stock Up 0.9%

BYD stock opened at $87.33 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $84.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Boyd Gaming has a 1-year low of $73.00 and a 1-year high of $89.96. The stock has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.08.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.16). Boyd Gaming had a return on equity of 25.63% and a net margin of 44.84%.The business had revenue of $997.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Boyd Gaming will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.51%.

About Boyd Gaming

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) is a diversified hospitality and gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company develops, owns and operates a portfolio of branded gaming and entertainment properties, including casinos, hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities. Boyd Gaming’s offerings range from slot machines and table games to live entertainment, dining concepts and convention space, designed to appeal to both regional and destination visitors.

Founded in 1975 by its namesake, William S.