Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Raises Stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 8.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 116,145 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,078 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $5,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2,547.6% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 556 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 18,500.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 744 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 740 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 142.2% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 654 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GLPI shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $52.00 target price (up previously from $51.00) on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $49.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total transaction of $674,855.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,621,957.46. This represents a 10.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total value of $151,170.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 146,800 shares in the company, valued at $7,397,252. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 22,858 shares of company stock valued at $1,171,377. Insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.2 %

Gaming and Leisure Properties stock opened at $51.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $41.80 and a twelve month high of $52.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.51.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last posted 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). Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.93% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $385.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $385.09 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.