First Trust Advisors LP Boosts Stake in Caesars Entertainment, Inc. $CZR

First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Caesars Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:CZR) by 36.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 315,506 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 84,854 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Caesars Entertainment were worth $8,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Caesars Entertainment by 47.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $953,000 after buying an additional 12,698 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Caesars Entertainment by 8.9% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,000 after buying an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Caesars Entertainment by 106.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,599,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,982,000 after acquiring an additional 826,356 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in shares of Caesars Entertainment by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 17,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 5,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Caesars Entertainment by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 506,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,665,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198 shares during the period. 91.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caesars Entertainment Trading Up 0.5%

NASDAQ CZR opened at $29.75 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.85. Caesars Entertainment, Inc. has a one year low of $17.86 and a one year high of $30.88. The firm has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.05 and a beta of 1.76.

Caesars Entertainment (NASDAQ:CZR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported ($0.30) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.35). Caesars Entertainment had a negative net margin of 3.99% and a negative return on equity of 7.64%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.39) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caesars Entertainment, Inc. will post -0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CZR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Caesars Entertainment from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Caesars Entertainment from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Caesars Entertainment from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Citizens Jmp upped their price target on Caesars Entertainment from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Caesars Entertainment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.71.

Insider Activity at Caesars Entertainment

In other Caesars Entertainment news, Director Michael E. Pegram sold 55,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.20, for a total value of $1,606,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Edmund L. Quatmann, Jr. sold 81,566 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.35, for a total value of $2,393,962.10. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 18,263 shares in the company, valued at $536,019.05. This represents a 81.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 293,463 shares of company stock valued at $8,609,241 in the last three months. 1.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Caesars Entertainment

Caesars Entertainment Corporation is a leading integrated gaming and hospitality company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company owns and operates a global portfolio of resorts, casinos, and entertainment venues designed to deliver comprehensive hospitality experiences. Its business activities span hotel accommodations, gaming operations, food and beverage services, live events, and convention services, with a focus on delivering luxury and entertainment to both leisure and business travelers.

The company traces its lineage to the founding of Harrah’s by William F.