35,740 Shares in Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) Acquired by Aptus Capital Advisors LLC

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 35,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,832,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in Churchill Downs during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. CWM LLC lifted its position in Churchill Downs by 36.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Churchill Downs by 82.8% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Churchill Downs during the second quarter valued at approximately $84,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Churchill Downs by 72.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. 82.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CHDN shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Churchill Downs from $157.00 to $151.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Macquarie lifted their price objective on shares of Churchill Downs from $154.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America raised shares of Churchill Downs from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down previously from $166.00) on shares of Churchill Downs in a report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.88.

Churchill Downs Stock Performance

Shares of CHDN opened at $141.28 on Wednesday. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a 1 year low of $111.10 and a 1 year high of $150.21. The company has a market cap of $10.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $138.88 and a 200-day moving average of $137.61.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.01. Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 45.48%. The company had revenue of $628.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $627.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Churchill Downs Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.409 per share. This is an increase from Churchill Downs’s previous annual dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.29%. Churchill Downs’s payout ratio is 6.92%.

Churchill Downs Profile

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.