Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) Given New $142.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) had its price objective reduced by Stifel Nicolaus from $161.00 to $142.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $166.00 target price on shares of Churchill Downs in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Churchill Downs from $151.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Churchill Downs from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Churchill Downs from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $157.00.

Churchill Downs Trading Down 3.3 %

Churchill Downs stock opened at $102.41 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $127.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.86. Churchill Downs has a 12-month low of $96.67 and a 12-month high of $150.21.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.06). Churchill Downs had a return on equity of 43.67% and a net margin of 15.61%. The firm had revenue of $624.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $620.21 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Churchill Downs will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.23%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.04%.

Churchill Downs announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Churchill Downs

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,808,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $909,183,000 after buying an additional 107,737 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in Churchill Downs by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,592,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,687,000 after acquiring an additional 214,694 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its stake in Churchill Downs by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,794,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,619,000 after purchasing an additional 366,283 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its stake in Churchill Downs by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,499,874 shares of the company’s stock valued at $201,223,000 after purchasing an additional 77,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Churchill Downs by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC now owns 1,344,595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $179,557,000 after purchasing an additional 59,657 shares during the period. 82.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.