Analyst’s rating upgrade sends Wynn Resorts shares higher

Shares of Wynn Resorts Ltd. gained almost 5 percent on Thursday after the casino operator was upgraded at JP Morgan to "overweight" from "neutral."

Wynn Resorts reached a high of $107 before closing at $105.59, up $4.85, or 4.81 percent, on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.

JP Morgan analyst Joe Greff raised his price target to $118 from $115, which represents a 20 percent "potential upside" from the current share price.

Over the past 52 weeks, the stock’s price has ranged from a low of $58.21 to a high of $117.50. On Oct. 25, 2002, Wynn priced its shares at $13 and raised $449.8 million from its initial public offering

"Our rating is based on continued strong operating momentum out of Macau that is underappreciated at current share price levels," Greff said.

In a research report, Greff said he expected Wynn Resorts to benefit from fewer developments in Macau than what is now expected and projected that Wynn’s new Cotai property would be worth $11 per share.