Shares of Las Vegas-based casino operator Wynn Resorts ended Thursday’s trading day up over 7%, making it TheStreet’s Move of the Day. The reason was merger speculation. TheStreet’s Jim Cramer, portfolio manager of the Action Alerts PLUS Charitable Trust Portfolio, noted on CNBC there is speculation of a Wynn merger with Las Vegas-based competitor MGM Resorts International.
Wynn’s first-quarter earnings, released in late April, included earnings per share of 70 cents, falling short of the consensus estimate. Revenue slumped almost 28% year over year to $1.09 billion.
Revenue from Wynn’s Macau properties, a major casino hub in China, dropped nearly 38% from the same quarter last year, but on Thursday Barron’s reported on a note from analysts at Credit Suisse who say Macau is starting to show strength.
As for MGM Resorts, the casino operator’s first-quarter earnings per share eclipsed estimates by 13 cents and jumped 50% year over year, according to a report released in early May. Though revenue fell 11.3% over the past year and fell short of analysts’ estimates.
Trading volume was particularly heavy for Wynn on Thursday. Some 5.6 million shares traded hands, significantly higher than its average trading volume of 2.6 million. MGM Resorts saw some 14.4 million shares traded, compared to its daily average of 12.3 million.
