ONLINE GAMBLING'S GIGAMEDIA GOING LIKE A BOEING

26 October 2007

Shares hit 7 year high


The Taiwan-based Gigamedia group, which took over the Canadian turnkey provider Grand Virtual and owns online gambling operations such as Everest Poker, Imperial Casino, Casino Treasure, Casino Lux, Casino Fantasy, Casino Glamour and Casino Elegance is riding the crest of the wave at present despite competitive trading conditions.

Shares in the company hit a 7-year high last week, continuing a remarkable rise over the last two months after Bear Stearns analyst James Rhee gave the stock an "Outperform" rating.

The stock slumped to $8.66 in August but launched a strong recovery after GigaMedia released better-than-expected financial results, showing the company had successfully transformed itself from a struggling broadband company to an online gambling and entertainment group with a strong European presence and reach into the burgeoning Asian market.

The share price reached the $23 range after Rhee predicted that GigaMedia could benefit from regulatory easing in Europe as the European Commission aggressively pursues the EU free-trade policy. In a note to clients last week, Rhee pointed out GigaMedia revenue is increasing "at a healthy clip" and the company has a good investment history.

GigaMedia is also attractive as a long-term investment stock due to the company's Asian presence. The Asian online gambling market is considered a promising region for online gambling companies that get cultural, processing and political considerations right, and is potentially the most valuable of all.

GigaMedia has secured a license to offer and operate the multiplayer online role-playing game Holic in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau as a stepping stone.

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa