Wynn Shares Rally as Macau Sales Grow

Shares of Wynn Resorts (NASDASQ:WYNN) climbed more than 4.5% on Friday as investors cheered strong Macau sales and analysts unleashed a slew of upbeat notes.

The casino operator posted a better-than-expected 12% increase in first-quarter profit late Thursday citing rallying demand in the Asian gambling hub Macau that helped offset a slight decline in Las Vegas.

It reported a 14.2% improvement in Macau sales as table game turnover in the VIP segment – its most lucrative business in Asia – jumped 26.7% to $36 billion. Slot machine revenue climbed 25.3% to $1.4 billion.

The company will open a new 1,700-room resort and casino in Macau in 2016, taking advantage of Asia’s rising middle class and subset of billionaires.

The upbeat report prompted price target increases from a number of analysts, including to $249 from $246 by J.P. Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) on an “overweight” rating, and to $265 from $255 by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) on a “buy” rating.

Analysts at Barclays (NYSE:BCS) raised their targets on Wynn to $240 from $229, while those at Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) increased theirs to $220 from $195.

Shares of Wynn climbed 4.5% to $215.60 in recent trade. They are up 58% over the last year.