Category Archives: Boyd Gaming

Revel limps forward; Sheldon Adelson’s would-be buddies

Posted on March 28, 2014 by David McKee

President Scott Kreeger is insisting all is well at embattled Revel Resort. On one flank he’s got employees on whose behalf Unite-Here has been pressing for union representation. On the other he has the task of trying to make the … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Louisiana, MGM Mirage, Revel, Sheldon Adelson, Texas, Wall Street | Comments Off

Dramatic turnarounds in Massachusetts; Tribe-on-tribe conflict in California

Posted on March 19, 2014 by David McKee

Hopes that the Mashpee Wampanoags have for a casino got a big lift on March 12. That’s when Interior Department Solicitor Hilary Tompkins ruled that tribes not recognized before 1934 weren’t excluded from casino eligibility. In her interpretation of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, California, Culinary Union, Derek Stevens, Downtown, Goldman Sachs, Harrah's, Horseracing, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Regulation, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, Tamares Group, Terry Caudill, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tribal | Comments Off

Louisiana and other Case Bets

Posted on March 19, 2014 by David McKee

Margaritaville ($10 million) was the difference between a positive (1.5%) and negative month in Louisiana, which was down 3% on a same-store basis. Isle of Capri Casinos had an exceptionally good month (+12%) but Pinnacle Entertainment (-3.5%), Boyd Gaming (-5%). … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Churchill Downs, Harrah's, Isle of Capri, Louisiana, New York, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Slot routes, Tribal, Wisconsin | Comments Off

Mega-casino proposed for Chicago; REIT-mania continues

Posted on March 14, 2014 by David McKee

Visualize Foxwoods Resort Casino. Now plunk it down in the middle of Chicago. That’s essentially what state Rep. Robert Rita (D) proposes to do, pitching a 4,000-10,000-position casino for the Windy City. He also would have the State of Illinois … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Florida, Illinois, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Racinos, Taxes, Wall Street | Comments Off

New York’s challenge; History repeats itself as farce

Posted on March 13, 2014 by David McKee

Wasting no time, the New York State Gaming Commission appointed three experienced public servants to the Resort Gaming Facility Location Board and gave them a June deadline to accept bids. That’s light speed compared to Massachusetts. It also overshadowed something … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Boyd Gaming, Economy, International, New Hampshire, New York, Racinos, Tilman Fertitta, Tribal, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Wisconsin | Comments Off

Optimism around the industry

Posted on March 13, 2014 by David McKee

Las Vegas‘ premier casino companies have been showing their wares at the J.P. Morgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant & Leisure Management Access Forum. Among the pilgrims was Wynn Resorts CFO Matt Maddox, who reported that Wynncore is increasing revenue per available room … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, International, Internet gambling, Japan, Louisiana, Macau, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Wall Street | Comments Off

Adelson: Sore winner; Good news from Atlantic City

Posted on March 12, 2014 by David McKee

Macao’s 2013 casino haul of $45 billion seems pretty mind-boggling on its own merits. That number could be $115 billion by 2018. Much of that growth will be driven by post-2015 projects of Melco Crown Entertainment and Galaxy Entertainment Group. … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Current, Donald Trump, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Macau, Melco Crown Entertainment, Mohegan Sun, Revel, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Wall Street | 2 Comments

Itchy trigger fingers in Massachusetts; Boyd besieged

Posted on March 12, 2014 by David McKee

After moving with extreme deliberation on terrestrial casinos, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission suddenly has a fire under its butt to do something about Internet gambling. “The time is now … We can’t wait any longer, even though we’re still in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Bally Technologies, Boyd Gaming, Hawaii, Horseracing, IGT, Internet gambling, Massachusetts, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Racinos, Regulation, Wall Street | Comments Off

Boyd under siege? Tight (slots) on the East Coast

Posted on March 11, 2014 by David McKee

Yesterday, Elliott Management announced that it owns 5% of Boyd Gaming. Shares of the company, which had closed just under $12, opened at $14. But is this a vote of confidence in Boyd? According to Seeking Alpha, “Elliott has a … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Columbia Sussex, Florida, Internet gambling, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, Neil Bluhm, New York, Pennsylvania, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation, Reno, Technology, Tourism, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street, West Virginia | Comments Off

Realism in Iowa, depression in Illinois, paradox in Ohio

Posted on March 7, 2014 by David McKee

“The problem is Iowa is not a free-market system It’s set up to encourage big-dollar investments, so the cannibalization issue is one we have to take into consideration.” — Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission Chairman Jeff Lamberti There you have … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Boyd Gaming, Economy, Harrah's, Illinois, Iowa, Isle of Capri, MGM Mirage, Neil Bluhm, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation | Comments Off

Boyd: Japan or bust

Posted on March 6, 2014 by David McKee

Well, they weren’t that dramatic about it. But Boyd Gaming executives surprised Wall Street analysts by announcing their interest in having a Japanese casino. For all the ongoing success of Borgata, we still think of Boyd as a small-casino company, … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Downtown, Iowa, Marketing, MGM Mirage, New York, Penn National, Problem gambling, Racinos, Regulation, Sahara, Sam Nazarian, The Strip | 1 Comment

Scott makes his move; Sudden death in New Hampshire

Posted on March 5, 2014 by David McKee

Just when it looked like the casino train was going to leave the station without him, Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) has opened compact renegotiations with the Seminole Tribe. The latter would like to keep blackjack and baccarat, Scott would … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Florida, Genting, MGM Mirage, New Hampshire, New York, Racinos, Regulation, Revel, Sheldon Adelson, Tribal | Comments Off

Genting’s dog-and-pony show; Ohio, Year One

Posted on March 4, 2014 by David McKee

Back when it was still Echelon, the axiom about the skeleton on the North Strip was that no one would start building anything nearby until Boyd Gaming resumed work. Perhaps the industry got tired of waiting. SLS Las Vegas, which … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Economy, Genting, Harrah's, Ohio, Regulation, Sam Nazarian, The Strip | Comments Off

Florida: Go big or go home

Posted on February 25, 2014 by David McKee

It’s casino expansion time again in Florida, where a major change of the status quo has been unveiled in the state Senate. Pending local approval, Miami-Dade County would get one megaresort (minimum investment: $2 billion) and Broward County would get … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Donald Trump, Florida, Genting, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Tribal | Comments Off

Case Bets: GLPI, Macao, Louisiana, Ely

Posted on February 21, 2014 by David McKee

Gaming & Leisure Properties, parent company of Penn National Gaming, held its first conference and discussed what Deutsche Bank‘s Carlo Santarelli, in a Freudian slip, called “key tenants [sic] of the … bull case.” We’re already seeing how GLPI intends … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Harrah's, Isle of Capri, Louisiana, Macau, Missouri, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation, Wall Street | Comments Off

And then there were three; Atlantic City under pressure again

Posted on February 20, 2014 by David McKee

Nevada gaming authorities will have to start reporting the Silver State’s online-gambling revenue now that South Point has entered the lists under its Real Gaming banner. (We won’t get the numbers until late March.) The site ” is offering tournament play … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Election, Entertainment, Florida, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Michael Gaughan, Regulation, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off

Wranglers find new home; Riding El Loco

Posted on February 19, 2014 by David McKee

Having been turfed out of The Orleans, the Las Vegas Wranglers hockey team has been bereft of a home. But they’ve paired up with Tamares Gaming in an unusual move. The Wranglers — rink, stands, zamboni and all — will … Continue reading →

Posted in Bally Technologies, Boyd Gaming, Downtown, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, New York, Racinos, Sports, Tamares Group, Technology, The Strip | Comments Off

Venetian restored; Mobile gaming ascendant

Posted on February 18, 2014 by David McKee

One of the 19th century’s greatest minds was dragged kicking and screaming back into the 21st century when Las Vegas Sands fully restored its Web sites. No more horse-and-buggy rides or reading by candlelight for Sheldon Adelson. It’s back to … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Internet gambling, Sheldon Adelson, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

Time running for Atlantic City; Adelson’s scurrility

Posted on February 12, 2014 by David McKee

After a quarterly hiatus, it seems time to start covering Atlantic City again. The headline item is a $9.5 million gross from Internet gambling. At that rate, online gambling isn’t going to be a game-changer and, indeed, the Boardwalk was … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Economy, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Mohegan Sun, Penn National, Sheldon Adelson, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment, Trump Entertainment Resorts | 2 Comments

The Midwest: First the good news …

Posted on February 10, 2014 by David McKee

Casino revenue in the Buckeye State vaulted 56%, as several new racinos came on line. The not such good news is that Ohio casinos are merrily cannibalizing themselves, down 16% on a year/year basis. Hollywood Columbus, in particular, continues to … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Isle of Capri, MGM Mirage, Missouri, Neil Bluhm, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Politics, Racinos, Wall Street | 1 Comment