Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) Sets New 1-Year High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCRI - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $93.36 and last traded at $91.06, with a volume of 21472 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $85.81.

The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.23. Monarch Casino & Resort had a return on equity of 17.06% and a net margin of 16.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.03 earnings per share.

Monarch Casino & Resort Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Monarch Casino & Resort's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCRI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered Monarch Casino & Resort from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial upgraded Monarch Casino & Resort from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort from $73.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $87.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO John Farahi sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.70, for a total transaction of $77,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 528,436 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,059,477.20. This represents a 0.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 24.94% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Monarch Casino & Resort

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MCRI. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort during the third quarter valued at $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Monarch Casino & Resort by 61.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 470 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Monarch Casino & Resort during the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 67.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 980 shares of the company's stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the period. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in the fourth quarter worth $93,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.37% of the company's stock.

Monarch Casino & Resort Stock Up 0.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90 and a beta of 1.74. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $83.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.71.

About Monarch Casino & Resort

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc engages in the ownership and operation of the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa, a hotel and casino facility in Reno, Nevada, and the Monarch Black Hawk Casino in Black Hawk, Colorado. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Reno, NV.