Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.76

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, February 21st, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of 0.76 per share by the real estate investment trust on Friday, March 28th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th.

Gaming and Leisure Properties has increased its dividend by an average of 4.1% per year over the last three years. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a payout ratio of 95.5% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings decline. Research analysts expect Gaming and Leisure Properties to earn $3.81 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 77.7%.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.6 %

GLPI stock traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $49.11. The company had a trading volume of 1,245,533 shares, compared to its average volume of 988,416. The company has a 50 day moving average of $48.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.76. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a 1 year low of $41.80 and a 1 year high of $52.60. The company has a market capitalization of $13.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.17, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.99. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.54 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.93.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,149 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.80, for a total transaction of $54,922.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 91,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,379,436. This trade represents a 1.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $190,498.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,624,947 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Company Profile

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.