Why Penn Entertainment Inc. (PENN) Went Up On Friday

We recently published a list of These 10 Firms Led Friday’s Rally, Here’s Why. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Penn Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN) stands against other firms that led Friday’s rally.

The stock market ended the week stronger with all its major indices closing higher as investors repositioned portfolios ahead of more corporate earnings next week while navigating an evolving global trade environment.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq surged by 1.26 percent, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones eked out marginal gains of 0.74 percent and 0.05 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, 10 companies mirrored the broader market sentiment, ending the trading week with modest gains. In this article, we have listed the 10 top-performing stocks and detailed the reasons behind their gains.

To come up with the list, we considered only the companies with a $2-billion market capitalization and $5-million trading volume.

The bright and neon lights of a glitzy casino, revealing the company’s iCasino and gaming properties.

Penn Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN)

PENN Entertainment grew its share prices by 6.6 percent to end at $16.15 apiece following an announcement that it would invest up to $200 million to transition its Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs riverboat in Iowa into a new land-based facility.

Upon completion, the upcoming property will be renamed Hollywood Casino Council Bluffs.

The new project will sit on a 58,000-square-foot (sq ft) land, which will form part of the larger 125,000-sq ft development.

According to Penn Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN), the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved the project on Thursday alongside its 15-year partnership extension with the Iowa West Racing Association, a nonprofit Qualified Sponsoring Organization (QSO) required for gaming operations in the state.

“We are pleased to add another landside relocation to our pipeline of development projects,” said Todd George, Executive Vice President of Operations for PENN. “This project will enhance the quality and efficiency of our Council Bluffs location and significantly improve the property’s competitive positioning in the greater Omaha market.”

Overall, PENN ranks 3rd on our list of firms that led Friday’s rally. While we acknowledge the potential of PENN as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PENN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.