MGM Resorts International MGM

Competitive advantage analysis · consumer-cyclical

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
51/100
Moderate

Ranked against 17 peers in Resorts & Casinos

About MGM Resorts International

MGM Resorts International, through its subsidiaries, operates as a gaming and entertainment company in the United States, China, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Las Vegas Strip Resorts, Regional Operations, MGM China, and MGM Digital. The company operates casino resorts that offer gaming, hotel, convention, dining, entertainment, retail, and other resort amenities, as well as online/digital games through its … Full MGM analysis →

Key strengths

  • Strong Interest Coverage & Conservative Leverage Debt serviceability is strong (score 0.73), with robust interest coverage.
  • Strong Liquidity Buffer Liquidity position is strong (score 0.77), providing operational cushion.

Key risks

  • Scale Without Profitability Despite scale, profitability lags peers (score 0.35), suggesting limited competitive advantage.
  • Below-Peer Operating Efficiency Operating margin at 29.4th percentile indicates below-peer efficiency.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

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Pricing Power

Moderate
51
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Signals, strengths and risks for Pricing Power

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Signals, strengths and risks for Cost Advantage

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Signals, strengths and risks for Customer Stickiness

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Signals, strengths and risks for Capital Efficiency

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Signals, strengths and risks for Resilience

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Signals, strengths and risks for Scale & Market Position

Where MGM ranks in Resorts & Casinos

MGM Resorts International ranks #10 of 18 scored companies in Resorts & Casinos by moat score — the top 56%. The widest moat in the group is Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (MCRI) at 83/100.

# Company Moat score Rating
6 Playa Hotels & Resorts N.V. PLYA 58/100 Moderate
7 Caesars Entertainment, Inc. CZR 56/100 Moderate
8 Wynn Resorts, Limited WYNN 54/100 Moderate
9 Hilton Grand Vacations Inc. HGV 54/100 Moderate
10 MGM Resorts International MGM 51/100 Moderate
11 Studio City International Holdi MSC 50/100 Developing
12 Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co VAC 48/100 Developing
13 Melco Resorts & Entertainment L MLCO 43/100 Developing
14 Golden Entertainment, Inc. GDEN 39/100 Developing

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How MGM scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 51 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 27 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 54 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 70 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 71 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 26 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding MGM's moat

What is MGM Resorts International's moat score?

MGM Resorts International (MGM) scores 51 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #10 of 18 scored companies in Resorts & Casinos, the top 56%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 17 companies in Resorts & Casinos. Its strongest defense is Resilience (71/100) and its weakest is Scale & Market Position (26/100).

How does MGM Resorts International compare with other Resorts & Casinos companies?

MGM Resorts International ranks #10 of 18 scored companies in Resorts & Casinos by moat score. The widest moat in Resorts & Casinos is Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (MCRI) at 83/100. The companies ranked closest are Hilton Grand Vacations Inc. (HGV) at 54 just above it and Studio City International Holdi (MSC) at 50 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 17 companies in Resorts & Casinos. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is MGM Resorts International scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for MGM Resorts International?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and MGM scores: Pricing Power (51), Cost Advantage (27), Customer Stickiness (54), Capital Efficiency (70), Resilience (71), Scale & Market Position (26). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

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