Sowell Financial Services LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI)

Sowell Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 13,348 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 719 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Gaming and Leisure Properties were worth $643,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GLPI. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 142.2% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 654 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties by 16.0% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 19,668 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 2,710 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the third quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,215,000. 91.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock opened at $50.67 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $48.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.00. Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. has a 1-year low of $41.80 and a 1-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 (NASDAQ:GLPI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $389.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.54 million. Gaming and Leisure Properties had a net margin of 51.65% and a return on equity of 17.41%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Gaming and Leisure Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Gaming and Leisure Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.92%.

Insider Activity at Gaming and Leisure Properties

In related news, SVP Matthew Demchyk sold 1,903 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.99, for a total transaction of $98,936.97. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 41,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,147,083.02. The trade was a 4.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director E Scott Urdang sold 5,000 shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.72, for a total transaction of $248,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 145,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,783.16. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 56,064 shares of company stock worth $2,778,908. 4.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GLPI. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Gaming and Leisure Properties from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.96.

About Gaming and Leisure Properties

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.