UBS Group AG Has $52.10 Million Stock Position in Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) by 196.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 611,207 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 405,340 shares during the period. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Boyd Gaming were worth $52,099,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 11.6% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,478,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $127,784,000 after purchasing an additional 153,462 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,221,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,580,000 after buying an additional 173,868 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 109.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 654,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,576,000 after buying an additional 342,575 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 600,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,876,000 after buying an additional 3,089 shares during the period. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,295,000. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Boyd Gaming news, CFO Josh Hirsberg sold 23,924 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.86, for a total transaction of $2,054,114.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 435,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,413,151.56. The trade was a 5.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Boyd sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total value of $2,545,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,930,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $163,779,123.48. This represents a 1.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 173,454 shares of company stock valued at $14,680,814 over the last quarter. 22.82% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Boyd Gaming Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE BYD opened at $84.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $84.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.60. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a 1 year low of $68.98 and a 1 year high of $89.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $997.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 44.84% and a return on equity of 25.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming Corporation will post 7.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Boyd Gaming Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from Boyd Gaming’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is presently 3.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BYD has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on Boyd Gaming from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $92.08.

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.