Vegas Room Rates Rising From Rock Bottom (MGM, WYNN. LVS)

Last week, MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) reported an uptick in room bookings and fewer convention cancellations. MGM executives said demand for its hotel rooms is high enough to warrant an increase in room rates, according to the Las Vegas Sun

MGM said raising rates in the coming weeks will help boost profit margins and could lead to a minor business rebound in 2010.

“The weekends are consistently solid now,” MGM Mirage CEO Jim Murren said during a conference call last week to discuss first-quarter earnings. “Even when we don’t have a major event we are able to occupy rooms at a solid level.”

Room rates are still low, if fact MGM Mirage’s revenue per available room (RevPar) was $102, or 34% lower in Q1 than the year-earlier period.

“Forward-looking business continues to improve, even as we look out to July and August,” MGM Mirage Chief Financial Officer Dan D’Arrigo said. “Thus far we’re able to firm up rates going forward as opposed to going the opposite way.”

This news could help out the stocks of MGM, Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) and Wynn (Nasdaq: WYNN)

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