StockNews.com Downgrades Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) to Buy

Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Wednesday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MCRI. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Monarch Casino & Resort from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Monarch Casino & Resort in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $79.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Monarch Casino & Resort from $73.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Monarch Casino & Resort from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.00.

Monarch Casino & Resort Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of MCRI stock traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 69,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,726. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $82.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a PE ratio of 18.56 and a beta of 1.73. Monarch Casino & Resort has a 12-month low of $64.50 and a 12-month high of $89.06.

Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $137.87 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $134.50 million. Monarch Casino & Resort had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 17.06%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Monarch Casino & Resort will post 4.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monarch Casino & Resort

In other Monarch Casino & Resort news, CEO John Farahi sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.70, for a total value of $77,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 528,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,059,477.20. The trade was a 0.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 24.94% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Monarch Casino & Resort

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 49.8% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 917 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Monarch Casino & Resort by 67.8% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 980 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,948 shares of the company's stock worth $785,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Monarch Casino & Resort by 30.9% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,693 shares of the company's stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 28.5% during the 4th quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,953 shares of the company's stock worth $1,259,000 after buying an additional 3,541 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.37% of the company's stock.

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.

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