Analysts Set Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Price Target at $53.93

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.93.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.53 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 17,617 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.40, for a total value of $870,279.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 54,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,674,516. This trade represents a 24.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $190,498.88. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 278,634 shares in the company, valued at $13,329,850.56. This trade represents a 1.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,624,947. 4.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gaming and Leisure Properties

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Creative Planning increased its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 22.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,737 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $810,000 after buying an additional 2,841 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 46.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 580,315 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,857,000 after acquiring an additional 185,348 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,646 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $702,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares during the period. Finally, Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,017,000. 91.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:GLPI opened at $49.11 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $48.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 11.35 and a current ratio of 11.35. The company has a market capitalization of $13.47 billion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.99. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 52 week low of $41.80 and a 52 week high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $389.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.54 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.65% and a return on equity of 17.41%. Analysts forecast that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s payout ratio is 105.92%.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

Gaming & Leisure Properties, Inc engages in 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.