With this announcement, TAG said it now covers 93 consumer companies in broadlines, hardlines, gaming, luxury goods, specialty stores and restaurants.

Last fall, TAG noted, it added Christopher E. Jones to the team as Director to lead the gaming sector coverage, thus helping the company expand the scope of its consumer focus. Chris has over eight years of research experience having been a retail analyst for both Oppenheimer & Co. Inc and Jefferies Asset Management. Jones has initiated coverage on the following companies including:

CASINO OPERATORS

Name of Company Ticker

Boyd Gaming Corporation NYSE: BYD

Las Vegas Sands Corp. NYSE: LVS

Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. Nasdaq: MPEL

MGM Mirage NYSE: MGM

Wynn Resorts, Limited Nasdaq: WYNN

GAMING TECHNOLOGY

Name of Company Ticker

Bally Technologies Inc. NYSE: BYI

International Game Technology NYSE: IGT

WMS Industries Inc. NYSE: WMS

Chris Jones said, "Despite a challenging investment environment, we view the current period as an optimal launching point for coverage of the gaming industry. With an unprecedented negative consumer discretionary cycle, those companies in the Gaming and Lodging space that survive will offer investors an opportunity to participate in a strong cash flow-driven consumer discretionary category once heavily weighted towards growth investors. With significantly depressed valuations and an industry shakeout afoot, now is the time to lay the foundation of our coverage universe for what we believe will be a modest rebound in the second half of 2009."

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