Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) Shares Purchased by Boston Partners

Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,794,630 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 366,283 shares during the period. Boston Partners’ holdings in Churchill Downs were worth $239,619,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 5,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $686,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,724,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 127.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 184 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,559,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Churchill Downs by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,252 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. 82.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Churchill Downs Price Performance

CHDN opened at $110.39 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $120.14 and a 200-day moving average of $131.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.93. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a 12-month low of $105.18 and a 12-month high of $150.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.06). Churchill Downs had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 43.67%. The business had revenue of $624.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $620.21 million. Equities analysts forecast that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, March 12th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Churchill Downs Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.22%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio is 7.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CHDN has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Churchill Downs from $151.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Churchill Downs from $164.00 to $161.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $166.00 price objective on shares of Churchill Downs in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Churchill Downs from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.38.

About Churchill Downs

Churchill Downs Incorporated operates as a racing, online wagering, and gaming entertainment company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Live and Historical Racing, TwinSpires, and Gaming. The company operates pari-mutuel gaming entertainment venues; TwinSpires, an online wagering platform for horse racing, sports, and iGaming; retail sports books; casino gaming; and Terre Haute Casino Resort.