MGM Resorts International Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:MGM)

MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 21,517 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 69% compared to the typical volume of 12,738 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MGM shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of MGM Resorts International from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of MGM Resorts International from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citizens Jmp lowered MGM Resorts International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded MGM Resorts International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Macquarie cut their target price on MGM Resorts International from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MGM Resorts International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.29.

MGM Resorts International Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:MGM opened at $33.82 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.86. MGM Resorts International has a 52-week low of $25.30 and a 52-week high of $47.26. The company has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.10, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.31.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.19. MGM Resorts International had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.29 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.74 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MGM Resorts International will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MGM Resorts International announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 22.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other MGM Resorts International news, Director Daniel J. Taylor sold 5,261 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.93, for a total value of $183,766.73. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Keith A. Meister sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.09, for a total value of $1,925,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,627,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,585,769.02. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 105,261 shares of company stock worth $3,486,367. 3.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MGM Resorts International

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in MGM Resorts International during the fourth quarter worth about $88,033,000. Eminence Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of MGM Resorts International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $72,408,000. Helikon Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of MGM Resorts International during the 1st quarter worth approximately $54,418,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MGM Resorts International in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $47,631,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MGM Resorts International by 104.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,611,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,962,000 after buying an additional 1,332,313 shares during the last quarter. 68.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MGM Resorts International Company Profile

MGM Resorts International, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates casino, hotel, and entertainment resorts in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Las Vegas Strip Resorts, Regional Operations, and MGM China. Its casino resorts offer gaming, hotel, convention, dining, entertainment, retail, and other resort amenities.