KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 28): CGS International has upgraded Genting Malaysia Bhd (KL:GENM) to 'hold' from 'reduce' on expectations of a New York casino licence win.

CGS expects GENM’s Resorts World New York City (RWNYC) to gain a first-mover advantage with table games potentially starting by July 2026, given its existing infrastructure and shorter ramp-up timeline compared with rivals.

"As there are only three bidders left in the final stage of the bid for one of three New York’s downstate casino licence, with RWNYC being one of them, we see RWNYC as a shoo-in to receive the licence on Dec 1, 2025," CGS said in a note on Friday.

Further, CGS raised its core earnings per share growth estimates by 18.6% for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2025 (FY2025), 14.4% for FY2026 and 59.1% for FY2027.

Consequently, the research house raised its target price to RM2.46, implying a 22 times calendar year 2026 price-to-earnings ratio.

Meanwhile, CGS said, with three days left in Genting Bhd's (KL:GENTING) takeover offer, it is unlikely that GENM will be privatised successfully.

On the contrary, HLIB continued to advise shareholders to accept the takeover offer by Genting.

The research firm maintained a more cautious stance, keeping its FY2025-2027 earnings estimates unchanged despite stronger domestic gaming trends. 

The research house highlighted persistent challenges in GENM’s UK and US operations, alongside Empire Resorts’ drag on profitability.

HLIB maintained its 'accept' stance, with a target price of RM2.35.

Shares of GENM were unchanged at RM2.35 at the time of writing, valuing the group at RM13.32 billion, according to Bloomberg. The stock is up 3.98% this year.

As of Friday, the counter has three 'buy', one ‘accept' and four 'hold' calls from analysts, with target prices ranging from RM2.35 to RM3.27.