United Services Automobile Association Sells 577 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

United Services Automobile Association lessened its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,785 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 577 shares during the quarter. United Services Automobile Association’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $857,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $136,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,082 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 5,433 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 55,881 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,691,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CKW Financial Group lifted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.0% during the 4th quarter. CKW Financial Group now owns 700 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.96.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.45, for a total transaction of $57,412.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 53,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,673,950.90. This represents a 2.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total value of $190,498.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 278,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,329,850.56. This represents a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 56,064 shares of company stock worth $2,778,908. Insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ GLPI opened at $51.12 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 11.35, a quick ratio of 11.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.80 and a 12-month high of $52.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $49.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.00.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. The company 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

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

Gaming and Leisure Properties 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.