Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Has $12.51 Million Stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 259,851 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,293 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina owned 0.09% of Gaming and Leisure Properties worth $12,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GLPI. MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 71,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,698,000 after buying an additional 5,242 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 129.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 896,831 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $46,142,000 after purchasing an additional 505,382 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.2% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 39,886 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,052,000 after purchasing an additional 865 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,080,860 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $312,316,000 after purchasing an additional 161,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 29.4% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 35,964 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,850,000 after purchasing an additional 8,164 shares during the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of GLPI stock opened at $47.68 on Friday. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.80 and a 1 year high of $52.60. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $49.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 11.35 and a quick ratio of 11.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.72.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.54 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.41% and a net margin of 51.65%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.38%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 105.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on GLPI shares. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 17,617 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.40, for a total value of $870,279.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 54,140 shares in the company, valued at $2,674,516. This represents a 24.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total value of $254,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 140,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,173,098.17. The trade was a 3.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 50,933 shares of company stock valued at $2,533,487. Company insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

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.