Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) Short Interest Update

Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,470,000 shares, an increase of 5.8% from the December 15th total of 1,390,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 441,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Churchill Downs from $157.00 to $151.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $166.00 price target on shares of Churchill Downs in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down from $166.00) on shares of Churchill Downs in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $160.88.

Institutional Trading of Churchill Downs

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Churchill Downs in the 3rd quarter worth $516,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in shares of Churchill Downs by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 763,561 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,241,000 after buying an additional 381,754 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Churchill Downs by 66.8% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 250,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,944,000 after buying an additional 100,230 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Churchill Downs by 15.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 442,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,782,000 after buying an additional 57,892 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc boosted its holdings in Churchill Downs by 3.9% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 6,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $812,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. 82.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Churchill Downs Price Performance

Shares of CHDN stock traded up $1.43 during trading on Monday, hitting $126.00. The company had a trading volume of 603,038 shares, compared to its average volume of 364,852. Churchill Downs has a 52 week low of $111.10 and a 52 week high of $150.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $135.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.54.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 45.48%. The company had revenue of $628.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $627.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Churchill Downs will post 5.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.409 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from Churchill Downs’s previous annual dividend of $0.38. This represents a dividend yield of 0.29%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.47%.

About Churchill Downs

Churchill Downs Incorporated operates as a racing, online wagering, and gaming entertainment company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Live and Historical Racing, TwinSpires, and Gaming. The company operates pari-mutuel gaming entertainment venues; TwinSpires, an online wagering platform for horse racing, sports, and iGaming; retail sports books; casino gaming; and Terre Haute Casino Resort.