What happened
Shares of regional casino operator Boyd Gaming (BYD 0.77%) jumped on Friday, rising as much as 12.4%. By the end of the trading day, shares were up 9.6%.
The stock's rise follows the company's fourth-quarter and full-year results, which were posted Thursday afternoon. The company's higher-than-expected revenue for its fourth quarter may have encouraged some investors.
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So what
Boyd reported that fourth-quarter revenue of about $792 million was up 33% year over year, handily beating consensus analyst estimates for revenue of $776 million. Non-GAAP earnings per share came in at $0.32, up from $0.22 in the year-ago quarter. This met analysts' consensus forecast for $0.32.
"The strategic initiatives we have executed over the past several years continued to pay off in the fourth quarter of 2018," said Boyd CEO Keith Smith in the company's' fourth-quarter earnings release. "Our recent acquisitions, efficiency programs and marketing refinements all contributed to strong results."
Check out the latest Boydearnings call transcript.
Now what
Management is optimistic about 2019. "Our consumer remains healthy, and we believe we are in a solid position to continue creating value for shareholders in 2019 and beyond," said Smith.
For the full year of 2019, management expects its adjusted EBITDAR (EBITDA "further adjusted for rent expense associated with a master lease with a real estate investment trust") to be between $885 million and $910 million.
