Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $76.76 and last traded at $76.76, with a volume of 639 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BYD shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.38.

Boyd Gaming Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The business’s fifty day moving average is $69.65 and its 200 day moving average is $61.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a P/E/G ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 1.54.

Boyd Gaming Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is currently 12.98%.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Keith Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.49, for a total transaction of $2,939,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,161,202 shares in the company, valued at $85,336,734.98. The trade was a 3.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Boyd sold 25,155 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total transaction of $1,744,499.25. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,487,970 shares in the company, valued at $103,190,719.50. This represents a 1.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 146,704 shares of company stock worth $10,540,944 over the last 90 days. 28.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Boyd Gaming

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 6,158.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 908,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,761,000 after purchasing an additional 894,383 shares in the last quarter. Long Pond Capital LP purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming during the second quarter valued at approximately $20,440,000. Ariel Investments LLC grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 12.5% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 3,031,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,046,000 after purchasing an additional 335,984 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 19.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,149,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,349,000 after purchasing an additional 189,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Boyd Gaming by 4,816.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 184,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,320,000 after purchasing an additional 180,806 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The company operates through Las Vegas Locals, Downtown Las Vegas, Midwest & South, and Online segments.