First National Bank of Omaha Makes New $541,000 Investment in Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. $MCRI

First National Bank of Omaha purchased a new stake in Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCRI) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Monarch Casino & Resort by 7.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Monarch Casino & Resort by 6.5% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 5,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio raised its position in Monarch Casino & Resort by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 7,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $718,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Monarch Casino & Resort from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered Monarch Casino & Resort from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. UBS Group set a $124.00 target price on Monarch Casino & Resort in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Monarch Casino & Resort in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.40.

Monarch Casino & Resort Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ MCRI opened at $124.81 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.00 and a beta of 1.31. Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. has a twelve month low of $88.13 and a twelve month high of $135.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.27.

Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ:MCRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. Monarch Casino & Resort had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 20.63%. The business had revenue of $142.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $142.85 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. will post 6.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Monarch Casino & Resort Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. Monarch Casino & Resort’s payout ratio is currently 19.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John Farahi sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.84, for a total transaction of $604,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 616,556 shares in the company, valued at $74,504,627.04. This represents a 0.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 26.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.