Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.96.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $49.00 to $54.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays dropped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ GLPI opened at $51.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 11.35, a current ratio of 11.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $49.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.74. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 52-week low of $41.80 and a 52-week high of $52.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.81, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.00.

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

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.95%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.89, for a total transaction of $254,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 140,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,173,098.17. This trade represents a 3.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,149 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.80, for a total value of $54,922.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 91,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,379,436. This trade represents a 1.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 56,064 shares of company stock worth $2,778,908. 4.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gaming and Leisure Properties

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 13,498,634 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $650,094,000 after purchasing an additional 5,797,299 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,830,944 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $617,938,000 after buying an additional 571,720 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,135,195 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $624,356,000 after buying an additional 162,484 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,245,884 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $300,395,000 after buying an additional 165,024 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,287,118 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $206,468,000 after acquiring an additional 211,657 shares in the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.