Short Interest in Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited (NASDAQ:MLCO) Expands By 29.1%

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited (NASDAQ:MLCO) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,470,000 shares, a growth of 29.1% from the June 30th total of 9,660,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,130,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.0 days. Approximately 2.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ MLCO opened at $5.82 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $7.54. Melco Resorts & Entertainment has a 12-month low of $5.67 and a 12-month high of $13.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a PE ratio of -13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.04.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment (NASDAQ:MLCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.02. Melco Resorts & Entertainment had a negative net margin of 4.34% and a negative return on equity of 7.61%. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.14) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Melco Resorts & Entertainment will post 0.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley raised Melco Resorts & Entertainment from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $8.30 to $9.60 in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $10.00 to $7.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment from $10.40 to $8.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.02.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Melco Resorts & Entertainment

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment by 1,297.2% during the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 246,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,835,000 after acquiring an additional 228,394 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in Melco Resorts & Entertainment during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment by 243.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 5,191 shares during the last quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment by 16.2% during the second quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 15,500,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,636,000 after buying an additional 2,166,524 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment by 179.8% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 154,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,152,000 after buying an additional 99,276 shares during the last quarter. 39.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Company Profile

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited, through its subsidiaries, develops, owns, and operates casino gaming and entertainment casino resort facilities in Asia. It owns and operates City of Dreams, an integrated casino resort that has 500 gaming tables and 800 gaming machines; approximately 1,400 hotel rooms and suites; a wet stage performance theater with approximately 2,000 seats; approximately 30 restaurants and bars, and 150 retail outlets; and recreation and leisure facilities, including health and fitness clubs, swimming pools, spa and salons, and banquet and meeting facilities.