Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Invests $970,000 in Boyd Gaming Corporation $BYD

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 11,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $970,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BYD. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Boyd Gaming by 56.8% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $628,000 after acquiring an additional 1,172 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 1st quarter valued at about $207,000. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in shares of Boyd Gaming in the 2nd quarter valued at about $229,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of Boyd Gaming by 14,719.0% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 3,091 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.81% of the company’s stock.

Boyd Gaming Stock Down 1.5%

BYD stock traded down $1.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $86.09. 626,236 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 810,617. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $84.98 and its 200 day moving average is $84.76. The firm has a market cap of $6.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Boyd Gaming Corporation has a twelve month low of $76.33 and a twelve month high of $91.00.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $997.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 44.84% and a return on equity of 25.63%. The company’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming Corporation will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Boyd Gaming Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Boyd Gaming’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.51%.

Boyd Gaming declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Boyd Gaming from $89.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Boyd Gaming from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Boyd Gaming from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Boyd Gaming in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $91.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Boyd Gaming currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Boyd Gaming news, Chairman Marianne Boyd Johnson sold 62,914 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total transaction of $5,286,663.42. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,609,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $135,272,166.24. This represents a 3.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith Smith sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $8,590,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 996,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,640,667.90. The trade was a 9.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 200,000 shares of company stock valued at $17,038,987 in the last 90 days. 22.82% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) is a diversified hospitality and gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company develops, owns and operates a portfolio of branded gaming and entertainment properties, including casinos, hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities. Boyd Gaming’s offerings range from slot machines and table games to live entertainment, dining concepts and convention space, designed to appeal to both regional and destination visitors.

Founded in 1975 by its namesake, William S.