Category Archives: MGM Resorts International

Election Special: “The biggest political event ever”

An anonymous British financier will have to wait another 24 hours to find out if his $5 million bet on Donald Trump comes up a winner. He’ll pocket $15 million from Curaçao bookies if it does. The flutter, made after … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona, Colorado, Culinary Union, Donald Trump, DraftKings, Election, FanDuel, International, Internet gambling, Louisiana, MGM Resorts International, Nebraska, Nevada, Politics, Racinos, Sheldon Adelson, South Carolina, South Dakota, Sports, Tribal, Virginia | 2 Comments

Baker’s casino crackdown; NFL playoffs diluted

No more all-night gambling for you, Massachusetts! Seeing a rise in Covid-19 cases, Gov. Charlie Baker (R) has curtailed casino hours. They have to close by 9:30 p.m. until further notice. If you’re buying booze (essential for Election Night) or … Continue reading

Posted in DraftKings, Economy, FanDuel, Health, International, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Regulation, Rush Street Gaming, Sports, Sports betting, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Baker’s casino crackdown; NFL playoffs diluted

VOTE!

It’s the most important thing you’ll do all year. ‘Nuff said. Another item from the Too Much, Too Soon file: MGM Resorts International is mulling partially re-closing hotels at some of its Las Vegas Strip properties. The company is heavily … Continue reading

Posted in Economy, Election, Las Vegas Sands, MGM Resorts International, The Strip, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

United States of Adelson

If you put your money on a Donald Trump upset special, you might still cash in big. Bloomberg reports that the Biden-Harris campaign is blowing it in battleground states like Pennsylvania and Florida. The short version is that black and … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Cretins, Culinary Union, Donald Trump, Election, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock International, Health, Internet gambling, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, Nevada, Ocean Resort, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, South Carolina | 2 Comments

MGM “unsurprising”; Penn outperforms

Analysts at JP Morgan were blasé about MGM Resorts International‘s 3Q20 report, setting their price target at $22/share. Wrote Joseph Greff, “We remain Neutral rated as we continue to see a slow recovery on the LV Strip, a market that … Continue reading

Posted in California, Charity, Churchill Downs, Colorado, Conventions, Detroit, Dining, Economy, Illinois, Indiana, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Macau, MGM Resorts International, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Slot routes, Sports betting, The Strip, Tribal, Virgin Hotels, Wall Street | 2 Comments

At long last, Circa; Las Vegas Strip, empty city

Yesterday was Circa Day, the opening of the most-anticipated Las Vegas casino in a long time (yes, even before Aria). Much of that buzz was due to owner Derek Stevens‘ canny mastery of PR but a spiffy new Downtown casino … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Boyd Gaming, Derek Stevens, Donald Trump, Downtown, Downtown Grand, DraftKings, Economy, Entertainment, FanDuel, Golden Nugget, Health, Illinois, Las Vegas Sands, Law enforcement, MGM Resorts International, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Sports betting, Terry Caudill, The Strip, Tourism, Vdara Death Ray, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Strip drags down Nevada; Station, MGM upgraded

Gambling revenue in September on the Las Vegas Strip plunged 39% to $355 million, driving the worst of a 22% decline in Nevada win. By contrast, Reno and Lake Tahoe were beacons of hope, up 3.5% and 36% respectively. Downtown … Continue reading

Posted in Boulder Strip, Colorado, Cretins, Downtown, DraftKings, Economy, Indiana, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, Law enforcement, Mesquite, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, New Jersey, North Las Vegas, Reno, Sports betting, The Strip, Wall Street, Wendover | Comments Off on Strip drags down Nevada; Station, MGM upgraded

Vegas: Too much, too soon?

Did Las Vegas reopen too swiftly and too soon? Has it, in fact—as we asked and Las Vegas Sands President Rob Goldstein heavily implies—jumped the shark? It has for 1,200 Las Vegas Strip workers. In addition to 828 already-reported sackings … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, Donald Trump, Economy, Full House Resorts, Health, Las Vegas Sands, M Resort, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Movies, Penn National, Sheldon Adelson, Sports betting, William Hill, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Adelson abandons Vegas; Boyd salvages bad quarter

Sheldon Adelson may have flung $75 million at deciding who’s going to run the country for the next four years but he’s giving up on America. News broke yesterday that Las Vegas Sands is shopping Venelazzo for six billion. We’ve … Continue reading

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Conventions, Current, Downtown, DraftKings, FanDuel, G2E, Las Vegas Raiders, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Rush Street Gaming, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Carrot Top returns …

… and there’s some good news, too. Other, better shows are reopening on the Las Vegas Strip, including David Copperfield and Jabbawockeez. (MJ Live resumes at The Strat on Nov. 4, a day we’ll need something to take our mind … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Entertainment, Golden Gaming, Health, MGM Resorts International, The Strip | 1 Comment

Sands: “Awful and apathetic”; Sheldon’s deep pockets

Despite ” taking into account a slower than anticipated rebound during the Golden Week period earlier this month and a generally slow visitation boost and revenue recovery from the (still early) resumption of the” Individual Visa Scheme in Macao, analysts at … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, China, Donald Trump, Economy, Election, International, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, MGM Resorts International, Politics, Singapore, The Strip, Tourism, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 2 Comments

You, me and Derek

Being snowed under with unrelated work today, I thought you might enjoy this interview I conducted with Derek Stevens for Casino Life, available as an online PDF. Please advise me if you experience any technical difficulties.

Posted in Derek Stevens, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, TV | 2 Comments

Sports, Internet buoy Atlantic City; Detroit struggles

As we predicted, Atlantic City is coming back faster than Las Vegas. It doesn’t hurt that it is not A) primarily a destination market; B) dependent upon conventions; C) reliant upon international travel; or D) at the mercy of the … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Caesars Entertainment, Detroit, DraftKings, FanDuel, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock International, Internet gambling, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, New Jersey, Ocean Resort, Penn National, Regulation, Revel, Sports betting, Twin River, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Massachusetts’ mixed message; Much ado about Circa

Even if Congress beats the odds and passes another megabuck stimulus bill before the election, it won’t provide more than a short-term shot in the arm for gaming, which saw a bubble of increased discretionary spending but is now backsliding. … Continue reading

Posted in Connecticut, Derek Stevens, DFS, Downtown, DraftKings, e-sports, Economy, Foxwoods, Harry Reid, Health, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, Penn National, Security, Sports betting, TV, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Trop in trouble; Sands has a plan; Super Bowl to Vegas?

We know that the Tropicana Las Vegas is being positioned for a sale (potentially to Twin River Holdings) but does that alone explain the pink-slipping of 828 employees, a drastic move? Placed in the context of other cutbacks, like the … Continue reading

Posted in AGA, Caesars Entertainment, Charity, Cirque du Soleil, Conventions, Dining, Economy, Entertainment, G2E, Health, Las Vegas Sands, Louisiana, MGM Resorts International, Penn National, Planet Hollywood, Politics, Resort fees, Security, Sports, TV, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Missouri wilts; Encore closes (sorta); Station upgraded

Pent-up demand and stimulus checks appear to be sputtering across the Midwest. Missouri casinos were down 7.5% last month, grossing $129.5 million. Slots ($112 million) were off 6% and table games tumbled 17%. Top grosser in the state was Ameristar … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Century Casinos, Downtown, Economy, Hard Rock International, International, James Packer, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Missouri, Mohegan Sun, Palms, Penn National, Regulation, Sports, Sports betting, Station Casinos, The Strip, Transportation, Twin River, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Missouri wilts; Encore closes (sorta); Station upgraded

Optimism for MGM, Churchill Downs; Cheap rooms = riff-raff

Although they remain relatively pessimistic on Macao, analysts at JP Morgan like MGM Resorts International sufficiently to raise their price target on its stock to $24/share. The primary reason was “better than expected trends” at MGM’s regional U.S. casinos, followed … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, Churchill Downs, Current, Entertainment, Horseracing, Illinois, Internet gambling, Law enforcement, Macau, MGM Resorts International, Paragon Gaming, The Strip, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Kings for a day; Covid’s casino kingpin

As you know, DraftKings is the current darling of Wall Street, its stock hovering around $50/share. Today Credit Suisse analyst Ben Chaiken initiated coverage with an “outperform” rating, putting a $76/share price target on the stock. He even went to … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Australia, Brazil, Caesars Entertainment, California, China, Crown Resorts, DraftKings, Economy, FanDuel, Golden Nugget, Health, IGT, Illinois, Internet gambling, Japan, Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas Raiders, Las Vegas Sands, Law enforcement, Lotteries, Louisiana, Macau, Maverick Gaming, MGM Resorts International, Nebraska, Rush Street Gaming, Sports, Sports betting, Technology, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, TV, Twin River, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Caesars pleads poverty; FBI descends on Vegas

News sources are reporting “mass layoffs” at Caesars Southern Indiana, one of the company’s more successful properties. As many as 200 staff have been given their walking papers, not just in the poker room but vital departments like servers, bartenders, … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, Canada, Cosmopolitan, Derek Stevens, Donald Trump, DraftKings, Economy, Entertainment, Health, Indiana, Las Vegas Sands, Law enforcement, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Missouri, Nevada, Penn National, Planet Hollywood, Resorts World LV, Security, Sports betting, Stanley Ho, Tourism, Transportation, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | 6 Comments

What ails Illinois?; Trump Plaza comes down

In a month that saw Ohio casino revenues grow 6% and Iowa almost 1% (to $119.5 million), Illinois casinos plummeted 27% to a measly $82 million. Even a sub-50% capacity restriction doesn’t begin to explain away the problem. Predictably, Rivers … Continue reading

Posted in Arizona, Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, Carl Icahn, Churchill Downs, Dining, DraftKings, FanDuel, Full House Resorts, Illinois, Indiana, Internet gambling, Iowa, MGM Resorts International, Michigan, Penn National, Politics, Rush Street Gaming, Spectacle Entertainment, Sports betting, Twin River | 1 Comment