The earnings were below estimates, but the stock continues to do well. The average price target of the analysts are higher than the current market price. JPMorgan Chase raised their price target for the stock to $30 from 29. Credit Suisse had earlier raised their PT from $15 to $17 with an underperform rating. Analysts predict that Pinnacle Entertainment will post $1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The stock is still up 90% on a one year basis and 46% on a ytd basis. The company reported an adjusted EPS of 11 cents for the quarter, missing the analysts’ consensus estimate of 32 cents by a big margins. The adjusted EPS in the same quarter a year ago was 30 cents. Long-term debt, including current portion, increased substantially to $4.49 billion from $1.44 billion in Q3'12, mainly because of the Ameristar acquisition. High leverage remains a major problem for Pinnacle and other companies in the sector. Capital investments are high, and acquisitions are required to leverage the growth in emerging segments. Caesars (CZR) & MGT Capital Investments (MGT) have recently acquired companies in the social casino sector which holds a lot of potential. The company had revenue of $418.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.15 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.6% on a yoy basis (revenue of $256 million in Q3'12). Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA increased by $37.4 million or 57.5% to $102.6 million. The results included 49 days of contributions from Ameristar, but excluded Lumiere Place Casino and Hotels. Combined Net Revenues and Combined Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA would have been $553.9 million and $140.5 million, respectively, had the results of Ameristar been incorporated for the entire 2013 third quarter instead of the 49 days included in the GAAP results. The full impact of the acquisition will be apparent in the current quarter.
