Essex Financial Services Inc. Buys 1,256 Shares of MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM)

Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) by 22.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,978 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in MGM Resorts International were worth $242,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MGM. CWM LLC boosted its stake in MGM Resorts International by 8.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,000 after buying an additional 854 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of MGM Resorts International by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 77,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,037,000 after acquiring an additional 6,040 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of MGM Resorts International by 37.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 20,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $798,000 after purchasing an additional 5,611 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC grew its holdings in MGM Resorts International by 233.3% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 21,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $821,000 after purchasing an additional 14,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in MGM Resorts International by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 6,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.11% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Keith A. Meister sold 51,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.57, for a total transaction of $1,865,070.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,687,478 shares in the company, valued at $207,991,070.46. The trade was a 0.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

MGM Resorts International Trading Up 17.5 %

Shares of NYSE MGM opened at $40.38 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $34.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.83. MGM Resorts International has a 1-year low of $31.61 and a 1-year high of $48.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 2.20.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.08. MGM Resorts International had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 25.84%. Equities research analysts expect that MGM Resorts International will post 2.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on MGM Resorts International from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on MGM Resorts International from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Capital One Financial increased their target price on MGM Resorts International from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of MGM Resorts International from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Macquarie restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of MGM Resorts International in a report on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.47.

About MGM Resorts International

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.