Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,980,000 shares, a decline of 8.9% from the January 15th total of 4,370,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,120,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays initiated coverage on Gaming and Leisure Properties in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $54.53 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.93.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Stock Performance

Shares of GLPI opened at $49.04 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $48.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.76. Gaming and Leisure Properties has a one year low of $41.80 and a one year high of $52.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 11.35 and a quick ratio of 11.35.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.20%. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s payout ratio is 106.29%.

Insider Transactions at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In other news, COO Brandon John Moore sold 3,982 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total value of $190,498.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 278,634 shares in the company, valued at $13,329,850.56. This represents a 1.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,149 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.80, for a total value of $54,922.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 91,620 shares in the company, valued at $4,379,436. This represents a 1.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,624,947 over the last three months. Company insiders own 4.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 13,498,634 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $650,094,000 after purchasing an additional 5,797,299 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,830,944 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $617,938,000 after acquiring an additional 571,720 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,135,195 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $624,356,000 after acquiring an additional 162,484 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,245,884 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $300,395,000 after purchasing an additional 165,024 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Gaming and Leisure Properties by 6.6% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,534,033 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $284,726,000 after purchasing an additional 341,492 shares during the period. 91.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.