An Allegiant Air jet takes off from McCarran International Airport on Friday, Aug. 26, 2011.
Biggest gainer: Boyd Gaming Corp.
Other than Shuffle Master Inc., all the local gaming stocks rose this week.
The broader stock market gained on enthusiasm about the Federal Reserve's plan to pump $40 billion a month into the economy to stimulate growth. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed Friday at its highest level since Dec. 31, 2007.
Shuffle Master reported higher earnings but they missed analysts' expectations, likely causing a 1.9 percent decline in its stock this week. The biggest local gainer was Boyd Gaming, up 14.5 percent for the week to close at $7.
The state Gaming Control Board reported big increases in July gaming wins in two of Boyd's local markets. Downtown was up 16.4 percent, while the Boulder Strip was up 17.3 percent.
With extensive gaming operations in the South and Midwest, Boyd also may have benefitted from a 0.9 percent increase in U.S. consumer spending in August -- the highest in six months.
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Biggest loser: Allegiant Travel Co.
The owner of Allegiant Air reported that with more flights in August compared to a year ago, its load factor fell.
The passenger count rose 15.9 percent. But with more available seats, the percentage of paying passengers fell 2.4 percentage points to 87.4 percent.
And at the end of the week, the Transport Workers Union of America, the union for 600 Allegiant flight attendants, announced that contract talks had broken down and asked the federal National Mediation Board to step in to help.
Allegiant stock closed at $64.49, off 2.7 percent from its Sept. 7 close.