Cybersecurity Issues Derail Shares Of Casino Names

It would be a nightmare for any large publicly traded American company but imagine the effects of a cyber attack on the security of major casino/resorts based in Las Vegas. The attackers are reported to have found, for example, credit card information and social security numbers of customers.

You have to wonder how much other detailed information might have been discovered such as betting patterns and who might have owed what and how much to the casino company. Would you want the cyber hackers to possess even simple matters such as when you checked in, with whom and when you checked out?

Wall Street is not waiting to find out more about it – shares in Caesars and MGM Resorts are being sold as investors assess the story and determine how much more comfortable it might feel to unload. Whatever is found out about the attackers and what they took away from their activities, stocks are already in “get out now” mode.

Here’s the daily price chart for Caesars:

After peaking in late July at just above $60, the stock now trades at $46 for a sudden 23% drop in 2 months’ time. The price now sits beneath its 200-day moving average (the red line) and well below its 50-day moving average (the blue line). Both appear to be turning over and now beginning downtrends.

Caesars weekly price chart looks like this:

Price peaked at $120 in September 2021 and since then it’s been a tough road for the Las Vegas-based casino/resort company. The recent sell-off takes it below a 50-week moving average that had been turning back upward. Note the Caesars has traded below its 200-week moving average since April/May 2022.

The MGM daily price chart is here:

That’s a 27% drop from the late July high of $51 to the current price of $36.54. The stock trades well below both significant moving averages and the 50-day has turned downward. Note the pick-up in selling volume (the reddish bars below the prices) in early August and then again from mid-September to the present.

This is the weekly MGM price chart:

The effect of the cybersecurity issue can be seen clearly as the stock had just slightly exceeded its October/November 2021 peak before the heavy selling began. The look here is not quite as bad as the Caesars chart but that sudden blast downward below the 50-week moving average is serious.