Mixed news from Atlantic City; More silliness from Trump

Atlantic City continued its paradoxical ways last month. The market as a whole suffered another big decline, down 10%. However, for individual operators, May was mostly good, with a same-store gain of 4%. (To see the blended impact of Internet and terrestrial gambling, look here.) The casinos were unlucky at the slots, with 11% less revenue on 8% less coin-in. Table play was 14% smaller but revenue was down only (?) 8%. Borgata, which grossed $52 million, suffered a rare bad month, down 5%, despite a 10% gain in slot winnings.Table play was up but the casino was spectacularly unlucky, suffering a 40% decline in winnings.

A new repositioning of Bally’s as a low-roller joint has yet to yield dividends. The casino grossed $18 million, a 12% drop from last year. Continuing to tumble was Trump Taj Mahal, falling 14.5% to $18.5 million. Lowest-grossing Resorts Atlantic City ($14 million) nevertheless gained 17%. The bulk of the Caesars Entertainment portfolio had a robust month, with Caesars Atlantic City ($28 million) up an astounding 51% and Harrah’s Resort gaining 8% for a $33 million tally.

Tropicana Atlantic City was dead even with last year, grossing $25 million, while Golden Nugget is catching up with the big boys, up 19% and grossing $19 million. Tilman Fertitta may have gotten off to a rough start in A.C. but he’s proving one of the canniest operators in the market.

* Donald Trump‘s latest pathetic bid for attention will, alas, not end the long national nightmare that is is his TV sitcom. Says an abusive-codependent NBC-TV, “we are committed to this franchise.” As for Trump’s publicity stunt, it was fittingly held in defunct Trump Plaza.

* Washington State‘s Colville Federated Tribes are trading up, closing Okanogan Casino in favor of new, $43 million 12 Tribes Resort & Casino. The new facility looks and sounds beautiful but you have to cross the gaming floor to get to the amenities. Some casino-industry habits die hard.

* Congratulations to Scientific Games on winning a contract to provide chip-sorting machines to U.K. casino company Aspers Group, with SGMS’ Chip Star CSL. The company is particularly upbeat on the product’s prospects, due to its conformity with European Community standards. One British success may not be enough to counter a renewed “Sell” recommendation from Deutsche Bank‘s Carlo Santarelli, who writes, “we simply believe there to be too much financial leverage in a business with; 1) challenged fundamentals across most business segments, 2) a legacy inability to generate meaningful discretionary cash flow, and 3) a stretched valuation relative to peers and sector historical multiples.” Ouch.