Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) CEO John Farahi Sells 1,000 Shares

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCRI) CEO John Farahi sold 1,000 shares of Monarch Casino & Resort stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.43, for a total value of $97,430.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 538,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,446,958.72. This represents a 0.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

John Farahi also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, March 16th, John Farahi sold 2,000 shares of Monarch Casino & Resort stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $198,000.00.

Monarch Casino & Resort Price Performance

Shares of Monarch Casino & Resort stock traded up $0.70 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $99.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 39,191 shares, compared to its average volume of 114,333. The company has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion, a PE ratio of 18.31 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $95.06 and a 200 day moving average of $96.50. Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. has a 12 month low of $69.99 and a 12 month high of $113.88.

Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.12). Monarch Casino & Resort had a net margin of 18.60% and a return on equity of 18.68%. The business had revenue of $140.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $139.39 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Monarch Casino & Resort Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Monarch Casino & Resort’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Monarch Casino & Resort

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 6,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $599,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. Aristides Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 2,489.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 50,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,815,000 after purchasing an additional 48,368 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 38.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 194,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,601,000 after purchasing an additional 53,745 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Monarch Casino & Resort by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 30,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,922,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCRI has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $112.00 price objective on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Monarch Casino & Resort from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Monarch Casino & Resort presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.80.

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.