Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings 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 price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $54.00.

Several brokerages have commented on GLPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $52.00 price target (up from $51.00) on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com lowered Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director E Scott Urdang sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total transaction of $151,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 146,800 shares in the company, valued at $7,397,252. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gaming and Leisure Properties

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GLPI. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.6% in the second quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 31,420 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,420,000 after purchasing an additional 1,388 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 2nd quarter worth about $47,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 10.5% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 27,170 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,228,000 after buying an additional 2,576 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.7% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 82,817 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,744,000 after buying an additional 2,156 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 21,911 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $991,000 after acquiring an additional 6,958 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Price Performance

GLPI opened at $48.16 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 11.35, a current ratio of 11.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $49.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.38. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a twelve month low of $41.80 and a twelve month high of $52.60.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last issued its 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 business had revenue of $385.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $385.09 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.92 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s 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.