Insider Selling: Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) Director Sells $49,948.80 in Stock

Boyd Gaming Co. (NYSE:BYD) Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $49,948.80. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $452,339.36. This represents a 9.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Boyd Gaming Stock Down 4.2 %

NYSE:BYD opened at $70.81 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Boyd Gaming Co. has a 1-year low of $49.34 and a 1-year high of $76.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $70.85 and a 200 day moving average of $62.65. The firm has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 1.54.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Boyd Gaming’s payout ratio is presently 12.98%.

Boyd Gaming declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on BYD. Barclays boosted their target price on Boyd Gaming from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, September 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.64.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Boyd Gaming

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BYD. Ariel Investments LLC boosted its position in Boyd Gaming by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 3,031,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,046,000 after acquiring an additional 335,984 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,108,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $136,680,000 after acquiring an additional 17,591 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,611,000 after purchasing an additional 33,379 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted 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, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Boyd Gaming by 5.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 971,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,835,000 after purchasing an additional 54,128 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

About Boyd Gaming

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.