Magnetar Financial LLC Buys Shares of 65,991 Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 65,991 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $3,040,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GLPI. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 416.7% in the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 744 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in the first quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1,587.3% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,063 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Price Performance

NASDAQ GLPI traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $49.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,425,927 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,341,977. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.80 and a 1 year high of $49.99. The company has a quick ratio of 6.47, a current ratio of 6.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market capitalization of $13.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $45.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.20.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $380.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.95 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.66% and a net margin of 52.79%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.15%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s payout ratio is 112.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GLPI shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $52.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.41.

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.