Man Group plc Increases Position in Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN)

Man Group plc grew its position in shares of Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN) by 233.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,790 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 30,659 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc owned 0.06% of Churchill Downs worth $5,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CHDN. Norges Bank bought a new position in Churchill Downs during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,967,000. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Churchill Downs by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,794,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,619,000 after purchasing an additional 366,283 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Churchill Downs by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,592,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,687,000 after purchasing an additional 214,694 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Churchill Downs in the fourth quarter worth $28,369,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Churchill Downs by 57.1% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 533,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,185,000 after acquiring an additional 193,677 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CHDN. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Churchill Downs from $160.00 to $127.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Churchill Downs from $165.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Macquarie reduced their price target on shares of Churchill Downs from $172.00 to $154.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Churchill Downs currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $143.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Churchill Downs news, Director Douglas C. Grissom bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $92.77 per share, with a total value of $927,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 38,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,605,877.13. This represents a 34.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director R Alex Rankin acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $92.65 per share, with a total value of $185,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 99,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,173,461.80. This trade represents a 2.06% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Churchill Downs Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:CHDN opened at $97.31 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $101.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.68. The company has a market cap of $7.03 billion, a PE ratio of 17.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47. Churchill Downs Incorporated has a twelve month low of $85.58 and a twelve month high of $150.21.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). Churchill Downs had a return on equity of 43.67% and a net margin of 15.61%. The firm had revenue of $642.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $649.68 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 6.92 EPS for the current year.

Churchill Downs Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.12%.

Churchill Downs announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.