Las Vegas Sands, Wynn: Casino Stock Winners

Casino stocks are rallying on Thursday following optimistic trends in the sector.
By Jeanine Poggi ,

NEW YORK (

TheStreet

) -- Casino stocks are rallying on positive trends on the Las Vegas Strip.

Las Vegas Sands

(LVS) - Get Report

is one of the biggest gainers after the company said it expects Vegas group room-rates to rise at least 10% by 2012.

"It's not what it was in 2006 and 2007 but it's getting better," Chief Operating Officer Mike Leven said on CNBC today. "We're seeing an enormous amount of group business on the books for next year. Our rate is not where we'd like it to be but it's starting to move now."

Levin's comments are driving up shares of Sands 6% in afternoon trading to $44.81.

MGM Resorts

(MGM) - Get Report

, which generates about 80% of its EBITDA from the Strip, is also climbing 4.1% to $13.24, while

Boyd Gaming

(BYD) - Get Report

is rising 3.1% to $9.79.

>>9 Casino Stock Winners & Losers of 2010

Another notable gainer is

Wynn Resorts

(WYNN) - Get Report

, which is jumping 5.6% to $106.34 following an upgrade by J.P. Morgan Chase.

Analyst Joseph Greff upgraded Wynn today to overweight, citing strong momentum and more muted supply growth in Macau. Greff is also expecting improvements on the Las Vegas Strip due to a better high-end room pricing environment.

>>3 Reasons Not To Bet on Casino Stocks in 2011

Macau-based

Melco Crown Entertainment

(MPEL)

is also surging 8.3% to $6.02. On Wednesday, Macau government leaders said they will stop granting land for casinos without public tenders,

Macau Daily Times

reported.

-- Written by Jeanine Poggi in New York.

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