Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Upgraded at Jefferies Financial Group

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) was upgraded by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm currently has a $92.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $73.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 28.08% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Boyd Gaming from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Boyd Gaming from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Argus raised Boyd Gaming from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Boyd Gaming presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.67.

Boyd Gaming Stock Performance

NYSE BYD opened at $71.83 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.71, a P/E/G ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 1.54. Boyd Gaming has a 52-week low of $49.34 and a 52-week high of $76.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $72.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Boyd Gaming

In related news, CEO Keith Smith sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $2,164,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,101,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,451,724.30. This trade represents a 2.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 660 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $49,948.80. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $452,339.36. This represents a 9.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 147,364 shares of company stock worth $10,590,893. Corporate insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Boyd Gaming during the second quarter worth $29,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Boyd Gaming by 54.9% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Boyd Gaming by 150.1% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 873 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 921.8% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 889 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

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.