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Caesars Entertainment, Inc. (CZR), based in Reno, Nevada, is a prominent gaming and hospitality company with a market capitalization of $8.7 billion. It offers a range of gaming options, including casino, poker, and roulette, alongside food and beverage services.
Shares of this casino gaming company have underperformed the broader market considerably over the past year. CZR has declined 7.4% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied nearly 36.8%. In 2024, CZR stock is down 12.9%, while the SPX is up 25.7% on a YTD basis.
Narrowing the focus, CZR’s underperformance is also apparent compared to the VanEck Gaming ETF (BJK). The exchange-traded fund has gained 9.7% over the past year and is up 3.6% on a YTD basis, surpassing CZR’s losses over the same time frame.
On Oct. 29, CZR released its Q3 earnings, and its shares dropped more than 8% in the following trading session. Caesars Entertainment reported a loss of $0.04 per share, missing Wall Street’s expectation of $0.21 in EPS. Revenue of $2.87 billion also fell short of the $2.91 billion forecast, leading to the plunge in stock price.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect CZR to report a loss per share to widen 158.7% year over year to $0.54 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is disappointing. It missed the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters.
However, among the 16 analysts covering CZR stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on 12 “Strong Buy” ratings, three “Holds,” and one “Strong Sell.”
This configuration has been relatively stable over the past months.
On Oct. 30, Macquarie analysts reissued an "Outperform" rating on Caesars Entertainment and set a price target of $50.
The mean price target of $53.28 represents a 30.5% premium to CZR’s current price levels. The Street-high price target of $70 suggests a robust upside potential of 71.4%.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
