Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) Sets New 52-Week Low After Analyst Downgrade

Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ:CHDN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low on Friday after Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on the stock from $160.00 to $127.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Churchill Downs traded as low as $87.38 and last traded at $87.99, with a volume of 4196215 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $105.04.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on CHDN. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Churchill Downs from $150.00 to $136.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Churchill Downs from $148.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Churchill Downs from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Churchill Downs from $161.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Churchill Downs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One equities 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.80.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Churchill Downs by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,808,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $909,183,000 after purchasing an additional 107,737 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Churchill Downs by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,592,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $479,687,000 after purchasing an additional 214,694 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its holdings in Churchill Downs by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,794,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,619,000 after buying an additional 366,283 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in Churchill Downs by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,499,874 shares of the company’s stock worth $201,223,000 after buying an additional 77,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC lifted its position in Churchill Downs by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC now owns 1,344,595 shares of the company’s stock worth $179,557,000 after buying an additional 59,657 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.59% of the company’s stock.

Churchill Downs Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47. The company has a market capitalization of $6.49 billion, a PE ratio of 15.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $124.96.

Churchill Downs (NASDAQ:CHDN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $649.68 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Churchill Downs Incorporated will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Churchill Downs Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. Churchill Downs’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.12%.

Churchill Downs declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Churchill Downs Company Profile

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.