An extra weekend in October was just what the doctors ordered for Atlantic City, where casino revenues were down just 8% last month, while sports betting surged 26%. Casinos took in $186 million and sports books $58.5 million. Internet gambling vaulted 107% to $93.5 million. “Casino revenues were pressured by capacity limits and restrictions on F&B offerings,” noted JP Morgan analyst Joseph Greff. Slots were down 10% but tables were only 3%, a fortuitous month for the house. Except Borgata, where gaming revenue fell 20% thanks to 23% less table win. Its slots also didn’t hold so well, retaining 18% less win than last year. The Caesars Entertainment quartet also had a bad month at the slots (-17%) but table win off only 5%. Still, Greff’s outlook for Caesars’ fourth quarter is grim: -26%.
Atlantic City: most of the Covid positive casino employees are reported working at the restaurants & bars: Harrah’s 36, Hard Rock 34, MGM Borgata 20, Bally’s 19, etc. Note that 2 of the top 4 are “New Caesars” properties with No Temperature checks for incoming customers.