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Bull of the Day: Wynn Resorts (WYNN)

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A huge name in the gaming industry, Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN - Free Report) owns and operates Wynn Las Vegas and Encore in Las Vegas, Nevada, as well as Wynn Macau and the Wynn Palace located in the Special Administrative Region of Macau in the People's Republic of China.

The company is currently making headway on a new gaming resort, Wynn Boston Harbor, in Everett, MA, located adjacent to Boston along the Mystic River.

Boasting a hotel, a waterfront boardwalk, meeting and convention space, casino space, a spa, retail offerings, and food and beverage outlets, Wynn Boston Harbor is expected to open in mid-2019.

Coming off a hot 2017 and strong growth in the Macau gaming market, this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock’s run might not yet be over.

What’s Going on in Macau?

In 2017, Macau’s overall gaming revenue jumped 19.1% to $33 billion, and has helped lift casino stocks like Wynn.

In particular, the company was significantly helped from the growth seen in Macau’s VIP gaming market. According to the Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, VIP play was up 26.7%, while mass-market play was only up 9.6%.

Wynn, of course, is known for catering to high-end gamblers—when the VIP market took a hit a few years, the company severely felt the impact—and this boost is nothing but a good thing for its stock performance.

It’s also important to note that Wynn has benefitted from Wynn Palace, located in the Cotai region of Macau, operating for a full year.

Strong Third Quarter Fiscal 2017 Performance

Last quarter, Wynn posted adjusted earnings of $1.52, which soared past the Zacks Consensus of $1.37 per share. Compare this to the 74 cents reported in the same period of 2016, and you’ll see how much the company is improving.

Revenues were $1.61 billion, also beating our consensus estimate and increasing 45.3% year-over-year.

Breaking it down by segment, Wynn Macau net revenues were almost $600 million, and surged 15.3% from the year-ago period. At Wynn Palace, net revenues were $555.3 million, while Las Vegas Operations reported revenues of $458.6 million for Q3.

And, adjusted property EBITDA was $473 million, an increase of 54.8% year-over-year thanks to respective increases in its main business divisions.

Rising Estimates

As a result, growth estimates have been steadily increasing, and analysts have grown quite bullish on WYNN lately.

For its current quarter, earnings are expected to grow almost 172%, and two analysts have revised their estimates upwards in the last 30 days compared to none lower.

Fiscal 2017 figures are also looking quite promising, with two estimates moving higher in the past month as well. The consensus estimate trend has seen a boost for this time frame, increasing from $5.36 per share to $5.38 per share.

Earnings estimates for 2018 are on the rise, jumping to $6.80 per share from $6.52 per share in the last 30 days.

Wynn reports its fiscal 2017 fourth quarter results on January 25.

Can the Rally Continue?

As I said above, 2017 was a great year for Wynn Resorts, and shares gained well over 93% in the past one-year period compared to the S&P 500’s gain of 23.7% in the same time frame. Year-to-date, WYNN has risen 5.6%.

And since the beginning of 2016, shares are up over 200%.

Wynn Resorts, Limited Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Wynn Resorts, Limited Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | Wynn Resorts, Limited Quote

WYNN is now trading with a forward P/E of 25.8.

Wynn Resorts isn’t the only casino stock experiencing a boom right now. The overall Gaming industry sits in the top 32% of all industries we cover here at Zacks.

But even among this impressive landscape, Wynn is a standout stock. Thanks to its strong performance, continued growth in the Macau VIP market, and ongoing construction projects that will increase its footprint, WYNN looks to be an intriguing opportunity for investors.

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