Federated Hermes Inc. Acquires 47,179 Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,111,911 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,179 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $54,873,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in GLPI. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.5% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,572,599 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,711,432,000 after purchasing an additional 555,332 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 18,474,328 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $961,773,000 after acquiring an additional 393,420 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,515,906 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $493,511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,255,222 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,183,942 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $445,054,000 after acquiring an additional 214,286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 15.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,771,108 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $399,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GLPI. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 21st. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $53.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. StockNews.com raised Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.09.

Insider Transactions at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, Director E Scott Urdang purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $45.00 per share, with a total value of $112,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 156,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,050,825. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock opened at $42.80 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $45.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.96. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 1-year low of $41.80 and a 1-year high of $52.45. The company has a market cap of $11.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 7.41, a quick ratio of 7.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.10%. This is a boost from Gaming and Leisure Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.75%.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Profile

GLPI is engaged in the business of acquiring, financing, and owning real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements, pursuant to which the tenant is responsible for all facility maintenance, insurance required in connection with the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties, taxes levied on or with respect to the leased properties and all utilities and other services necessary or appropriate for the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties.