Boyd Gaming Corporation Stock Downgraded (BYD)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to sell. The company's weaknesses can be seen in multiple areas, such as its feeble growth in its earnings per share, unimpressive growth in net income, generally high debt management risk, weak operating cash flow and generally disappointing historical performance in the stock itself.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• BOYD GAMING CORP has exprienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. Earnings per share have declined over the last two years. We anticipate that this should continue in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, BOYD GAMING CORP swung to a loss, reporting -$0.04 versus $0.12 in the prior year. For the next year, the market is expecting a contraction of 125.0% in earnings (-$0.09 versus -$0.04).
• The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500 and the Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure industry. The net income has significantly decreased by 608.1% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, falling from $3.11 million to -$15.80 million.
• The debt-to-equity ratio is very high at 3.41 and currently higher than the industry average, implying increased risk associated with the management of debt levels within the company. Along with the unfavorable debt-to-equity ratio, BYD maintains a poor quick ratio of 0.91, which illustrates the inability to avoid short-term cash problems.
• Net operating cash flow has significantly decreased to $37.07 million or 56.56% when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, when comparing the cash generation rate to the industry average, the firm's growth is significantly lower.
• The share price of BOYD GAMING CORP has not done very well: it is down 14.09% and has underperformed the S&P 500, in part reflecting the company's sharply declining earnings per share when compared to the year-earlier quarter. The fact that the stock is now selling for less than others in its industry in relation to its current earnings is not reason enough to justify a buy rating at this time.

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Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in the United States. Boyd Gaming has a market cap of $476.2 million and is part of the services sector and leisure industry. Shares are down 26.3% year to date as of the close of trading on Tuesday.

You can view the full Boyd Gaming Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

-- Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff

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