Morgan Stanley Cuts Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) Price Target to $66.00

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) had its target price decreased by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $68.00 to $66.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 14.80% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on BYD. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Boyd Gaming from $82.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $78.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Boyd Gaming from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $80.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Boyd Gaming from $71.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Boyd Gaming from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.92.

Boyd Gaming Stock Performance

NYSE BYD traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $57.49. 334,865 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 940,855. Boyd Gaming has a 1 year low of $49.34 and a 1 year high of $73.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average is $53.83 and its 200-day moving average is $60.06. The company has a market capitalization of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 1.58.

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.06). Boyd Gaming had a net margin of 14.91% and a return on equity of 34.76%. The business had revenue of $960.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $947.26 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Boyd Gaming will post 6.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boyd Gaming announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Boyd Gaming

In other Boyd Gaming news, Director Christine J. Spadafor sold 1,874 shares of Boyd Gaming stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.38, for a total transaction of $100,034.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,338 shares in the company, valued at $124,802.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 27.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Boyd Gaming during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Boyd Gaming by 57.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 518 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Boyd Gaming in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Boyd Gaming by 3,333.3% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. 76.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Boyd Gaming Company Profile

Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The company operates through Las Vegas Locals, Downtown Las Vegas, Midwest & South, and Online segments.