Lee Fenton, CEO of Bally’s Corporation (BALY), recently bought 5,750 shares of company stock. The buy increased his stake by almost 2.5 percent, and came to a total purchase price of just under $259,000.
He was joined by two division presidents as well as a president of retail, who all bought on the same date at slightly different prices. All told, this cluster of insiders bought nearly $850,000 in company shares.
This marks a sharp reversal from the past three years, where insiders have generally been sellers, although in smaller amounts of shares. Overall, insiders own 39.2 percent of the company.
Bally’s operates a dozen casinos across a number of states, including Rhode Island, Mississippi, and Colorado among others. The company is also looking to expand into online sports betting, a lucrative market that could substantially increase the company’s bottom line and profitability given the massive expense of owning and operating casinos.
Action to take: Shares have doubled the return of the S&P 500 in the past year, a trend that could continue given the recovery in travel and tourism, to say nothing of an increased online presence. That and the high insider ownership makes for a potentially great investment. Shareholders won’t be rewarded with a dividend at present, however.
For traders, shares have been trending down since March, but have started to move higher on announcement for approval for online sports betting. That could be the start of a larger trend. The February $50 calls, last going for about $3.50, offer the potential for a large move higher should the current uptrend continue.
Disclosure: The author of this article has no position in the company mentioned here, but may trade after the next 72 hours. The author receives no compensation from any of the companies mentioned in this article.