PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eighteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.5625.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citizens Jmp dropped their price target on shares of PENN Entertainment from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of PENN Entertainment in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of PENN Entertainment in a report on Friday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded PENN Entertainment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on PENN Entertainment from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th.

PENN Entertainment Stock Performance

Shares of PENN Entertainment stock opened at $14.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a PE ratio of -2.21 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.65. PENN Entertainment has a 52 week low of $13.24 and a 52 week high of $23.08. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.28.

PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. PENN Entertainment had a negative return on equity of 4.59% and a negative net margin of 13.24%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.24) earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that PENN Entertainment will post -1.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at PENN Entertainment

In other PENN Entertainment news, CEO Jay A. Snowden purchased 34,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $14.32 per share, for a total transaction of $496,904.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,117,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,000,094. This trade represents a 3.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gupta Vimla Black sold 7,987 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.51, for a total transaction of $115,891.37. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,000 shares in the company, valued at $362,750. This represents a 24.21% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 62,015 shares of company stock valued at $882,778. Insiders own 2.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PENN Entertainment

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hill Path Capital LP acquired a new stake in PENN Entertainment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $62,595,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of PENN Entertainment during the second quarter worth $40,214,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of PENN Entertainment during the second quarter worth $39,737,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of PENN Entertainment by 54.6% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,002,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,905,000 after acquiring an additional 2,120,740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in PENN Entertainment in the third quarter valued at $40,537,000. 91.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PENN Entertainment

PENN Entertainment, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming experiences. The company operates through five segments: Northeast, South, West, Midwest, and Interactive. It operates online sports betting in various jurisdictions; and iCasino under Hollywood Casino, L'Auberge, ESPN BET, and theScore Bet Sportsbook and Casino brands.