Analysts boost ratings

Tuesday, Sept. 28, 1999 | 10:45 a.m.

Park Place Entertainment Inc. shares jumped 8.7 percent today after two prominent gaming analysts boosted their ratings on the Las Vegas-based gaming company.

Park Place stock was quoted at $11.75, up 93.75 cents in heavy early afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume in the first hour of trading matched the average shares daily over the past 60 days.

Analysts Jason Ader of Bear Stearns & Co. and Mike Happel of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter put "buy" and "strong buy" ratings respectively on Park Place stock. Their action follows Friday's upgrade of Park Place earnings estimates by Deutsche Banc Alex Brown analyst Robin Farley.

Ader said Park Place "is poised to deliver better than expected earnings, particularly in the third and fourth quarters, while our long-term outlook is supported by substantial free cash flow growth, superior management, high return-on-investment projects, probability of a meaningful share-repurchase program and development of a more efficient player-tracking program."

Ader sees a $15 to $17 per share asset value for Park Place, while Happel set a $17-share price target. Farley set a 12-month target of $14 to $15 a share for Park Place in her Friday report.