Insider Selling: Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) CFO Sells $674,855.46 in Stock

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) CFO Desiree A. Burke sold 12,973 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.02, for a total value of $674,855.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 108,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,621,957.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of GLPI opened at $51.50 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 5.91 and a current ratio of 5.91. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.80 and a 1 year high of $52.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a PE ratio of 19.00, a P/E/G ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.98.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.15). Gaming and Leisure Properties had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 52.79%. The business had revenue of $380.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.95 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.90%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 112.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gaming and Leisure Properties

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,583 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $352,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 27.4% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 309,882 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,276,000 after purchasing an additional 66,601 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 19.0% during the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 153,195 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,560,000 after purchasing an additional 24,489 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the first quarter worth $2,396,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 40.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,709,300 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $627,204,000 after buying an additional 3,684,553 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on GLPI shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Friday, June 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $47.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Six 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, Gaming and Leisure Properties presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.11.

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.