Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Receives $54.00 Average PT from Brokerages

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $54.00.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $53.25 to $57.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gaming and Leisure Properties news, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total value of $190,498.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 278,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,329,850.56. This represents a 1.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total transaction of $151,170.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 146,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,397,252. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 15,016 shares of company stock worth $741,943. Company insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GLPI. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 94.9% in the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 4,107 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 13.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,503,392 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $77,350,000 after purchasing an additional 173,810 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.6% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 741,120 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $38,131,000 after purchasing an additional 11,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 7.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,259,224 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $641,059,000 after purchasing an additional 889,698 shares in the last quarter. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of GLPI opened at $47.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $13.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.98. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 12 month low of $41.80 and a 12 month high of $52.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $49.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.49. 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 (NASDAQ:GLPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $385.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $385.09 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. Analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.29%.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

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.