Category Archives: Harrah's

Sheldon’s boys

Posted on March 20, 2014 by David McKee

At least one Congressman has rallied to Sheldon Adelson‘s banner, in the form of boyish Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT). He’s introducing a bill to reimpose the pre-2011 interpretation of the Wire Act, banning all forms of online gambling. Chaffetz’s spokeswoman … Continue reading →

Posted in Harrah's, Internet gambling, Planet Hollywood, Politics, Sheldon Adelson | 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

Caesars’ big coup; Foxwoods site revealed

Posted on March 18, 2014 by David McKee

South Korea hasn’t opened its casino business to Western firms … until now. Caesars Entertainment, in partnernship with Hong Kong‘s Lippo Ltd. and OUE Ltd. from Singapore has won preliminary approval for a concession. The project is expected to cost … Continue reading →

Posted in Foxwoods, Genting, Hard Rock Hotel, Harrah's, International, Kentucky, Macau, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Politics, Warner Gaming | 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

Caesars disappoints Wall Street

Posted on March 12, 2014 by David McKee

Caesars Entertainment posted a staggering, $1.76 billion loss (-$12.83/share), as some analysts fret that the recent fire sale of four casinos to Caesars Growth Partners may starve parent company Caesars Entertainment Operating Co. of cash flow. Meanwhile, Big Caesars has … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Harrah's, Louisiana, Missouri, Revel, Wall Street | 4 Comments

Missouri, Indiana take their lumps

Posted on March 11, 2014 by David McKee

Bad weather is being blamed for dismal attendance figures at St. Louis-area casinos. Those on the Missouri side were down 11%, while Casino Queen in East St. Louis and Alton Belle were off 17% at the turnstile. Statewide, revenue was down 7%, with … Continue reading →

Posted in Harrah's, Indiana, Isle of Capri, Missouri, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Taxes, Tropicana Entertainment | 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

China: Hands off Hainan

Posted on March 7, 2014 by David McKee

China dealt a severe blow to the hopes of Big Gaming this week, declaring the island of Hainan off-limits for gambling. “We cannot at all allow Hainan to operate casinos,” declared resident Communist Party strongman Luo Baoming. This cannot have … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Architecture, Charity, Harrah's, Illinois, International, Kansas, Macau, MGM Mirage, Phil Ruffin, Sports, Stanley Ho | 1 Comment

Vegas: Behind the standoff; Sands: Another one bites the dust

Posted on March 6, 2014 by David McKee

As the Culinary Union heads toward a March 20 strike vote, the culprit behind its stalemate with over a dozen casinos has been identified as the Affordable Care Act. “The biggest hurdle to reaching settlements in Vegas is the new … Continue reading →

Posted in Culinary Union, Harrah's, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Pennsylvania, Politics, Riviera, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, The Strip | 1 Comment

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

Caesars sells … to itself

Posted on March 3, 2014 by David McKee

Our friends Big Caesars and Little Caesars are back in the news again. Caesars Growth Partners (Little Caesars) has agreed to spend $2.2 billion to obtain Bally’s Las Vegas, The Cromwell, The Quad and Harrah’s New Orleans. The price includes … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Election, Harrah's, Louisiana, Macau, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip, Tribal, Wisconsin | 2 Comments

Case Bets: Sands, Atlantic City, Maryland, Isle of Capri, Churchill Downs, etc.

Posted on February 28, 2014 by David McKee

Las Vegas Sands lost more top executive talent when Sands Bethworks President Robert DeSalvio handed in his notice. He’ll be at the casino through mid-March but the move seems to have caught Sands off-guard. The latter assured reporters that DeSalvio’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Churchill Downs, Cordish Co., Foxwoods, Harrah's, Horseracing, Illinois, International, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Sheldon Adelson, Tilman Fertitta, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Brave new world

Posted on February 26, 2014 by David McKee

We’re still months away from the moment of decision, but Las Vegas has improbably emerged as a frontrunner for the 2016 Republican Party convention, that quadrennial ritual in which Sheldon Adelson tries to purchase the next president of these United … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, Environment, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip | Comments Off

Nugget strikes gold; Hailing Caesars

Posted on February 25, 2014 by David McKee

One casino’s misery is another’s good fortune. The Golden Nugget in Atlantic City says it’s being swamped with new business ever since Caesars Entertainment and Tropicana Entertainment conspired to the euthanize the Atlantic Club. According to General Manager Tom Pohlman, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Cordish Co., Delaware, Downtown, Economy, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Maryland, MGM Mirage, Taxes, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment | 1 Comment

Across the Pacific

Posted on February 25, 2014 by David McKee

Rash or merely aggressive? That’s the question now that MGM Resorts International CEO Jim Murren has vowed to match Las Vegas Sands‘ Japanese investments dollar for dollar — as much as $10 billion. “We will overinvest early on to ensure, … Continue reading →

Posted in Harrah's, history, Japan, Macau, Maryland, MGM Mirage, Ohio, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, Wall Street | Comments Off

Kansas City story

Posted on February 24, 2014 by David McKee

Posted in Harrah's, Missouri, Pinnacle Entertainment | Comments Off

Sheldon’s boys; Tough questions for the industry

Posted on February 21, 2014 by David McKee

Improbably, Sheldon Adelson has found two U.S. senators to carry water for him on Capitol Hill as he tries to stem the tide of Internet gambling. Both Sen. Dean Heller (R) and Sen. Harry Reid (D) are working to reinstate … Continue reading →

Posted in Culinary Union, Harrah's, Harry Reid, Illinois, Internet gambling, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Politics, Problem gambling, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Technology | 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

Macao: Who’s the boss?; Iowa racing, gone to the dogs

Posted on February 20, 2014 by David McKee

Jim Murren, Steve Wynn and Sheldon Adelson may find themselves held hostage to the temper of Sino-American relationships, if chatter from Chinese sources holds true. It’s being put about that casino concessions could be shortened to five years. Stocks of … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Iowa, Macau, MGM Mirage, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn | Comments Off