Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCRI) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $127.90 and last traded at $127.22, with a volume of 229348 shares. The stock had previously closed at $124.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Monarch Casino & Resort from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Monarch Casino & Resort from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Zacks Research raised Monarch Casino & Resort from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Monarch Casino & Resort from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $109.50.

Monarch Casino & Resort Trading Up 1.9%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $112.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56 and a beta of 1.30.

Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.37. Monarch Casino & Resort had a net margin of 19.62% and a return on equity of 19.98%. The company had revenue of $136.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $128.49 million. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. will post 7.07 EPS for the current year.

Monarch Casino & Resort Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Monarch Casino & Resort’s payout ratio is 20.34%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John Farahi sold 5,000 shares of Monarch Casino & Resort stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.84, for a total value of $604,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 616,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,504,627.04. The trade was a 0.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 26.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Monarch Casino & Resort in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 210.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 465 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 191.3% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 69.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.37% of the company’s stock.

About Monarch Casino & Resort

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc is a publicly traded owner and operator of an integrated casino resort in Reno, Nevada. The company’s flagship property, the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa, features a full-service casino floor with table games, slot machines, and sports betting, complemented by a diverse portfolio of amenities. Guests can choose from over 800 rooms and suites, dine at multiple on-site restaurants and bars, unwind at the full-service spa and salon, or enjoy live entertainment in the property’s showroom.

Monarch’s revenue streams are diversified across gaming operations, hotel accommodations, food and beverage services, and convention and meeting facilities.