Casino Stock Winners: Las Vegas Sands, Wynn

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Casino stocks, specifically those with a strong presence in Macau, were gaining momentum Friday morning following another month of record revenue in the Chinese gambling enclave.

In March, Macau gaming revenue surged 48% to $2.5 billion, a 1.1% uptick from February.

According to preliminary estimates by J.P. Morgan, by market share: SJM held 34.7%, Las Vegas Sands 15.2%, Wynn Resorts 13.7%, Melco Crown Entertainment 13.9%, Galaxy 11.8% and all other casinos held 10.7%.

Given this strength, Wells Fargo analyst Carlo Santarelli noted that he expects upside to first-quarter consensus estimates for Las Vegas Sands(LVS), Wynn Resorts (WYNN) and Melco Crown Entertainment(MPEL).

Las Vegas Sands was also upgraded by Stifel Nicolaus to buy from hold. Shares of the casino giant took a hit on Thursday as the investigation into its Sands China division escalates.

Melco announced Friday morning that it appointed Geoffrey Davis as its new chief financial officer.

J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff, called out Las Vegas Sands and Wynn as his favorite Asian gaming operators.

Wynn Resorts was the biggest gainer early in the day, surging 6.5% to $135.43. Las Vegas Sands jumped 4.1% to $43.94, while MGM Resorts(MGM) increased 2.4% to $13.48.

Earlier in the day, the Wall Street Journal reported that MGM plans to raise $1 billion in its initial public offering of its Macau assets on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in May.

--Written by Jeanine Poggi in New York.

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