Category Archives: Wall Street

Underwater at the Westin

Posted on August 11, 2010 by David McKee

If you’re having to go hat in hand to the bank to ask for a renegotiated home loan, take comfort in the thought that you’re hardly alone. Even plutocrats like Columbia Sussex CEO William J. Yung are having to plead … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Columbia Sussex, Current, Economy, Entertainment, Harrah's, Station Casinos, The Strip, Wall Street | 2 Comments

Ameristar up for grabs

Posted on August 11, 2010 by David McKee

Having been in “stay the course” mode ever since the death of company founder Craig H. Neilsen, locals giant Ameristar Casinos is putting itself on the block. According to the New York Post, the company has hired an investment bank … Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Current, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, MGM Mirage, Missouri, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation, Station Casinos, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Atlantic City: It could be worse

Posted on August 10, 2010 by David McKee

Considering that table games were up and running in Delaware and gradually rolling out in Pennsylvania, it comes as a pleasant surprise to see that Atlantic City was only down 5% in July. Frankly, I was expecting much worse, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Carl Icahn, Colony Capital, Columbia Sussex, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Entertainment, Harrah's, Horseracing, Macau, Marketing, MGM Mirage, New York, Pansy Ho, Pennsylvania, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Technology, Tourism, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street | 4 Comments

The great train robbery

Posted on August 6, 2010 by David McKee

Take that, Boyd Gaming, ya varmints! To paraphrase vile Remington Products CEO Victor Kiam (1926-2001), the Fertitta Brothers liked Station Casinos so much they stole the company. Not only did three Fertitta siblings and an in-law cash out during the … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Penn National, Station Casinos, Wall Street | 7 Comments

Gone baby, gone

Posted on August 5, 2010 by David McKee

“[T]he confidence that ­property prices and stock markets would permanently defy gravity” is a phrase that perfectly encapsulates how the casino industry got itself into its present pickle. In what other mindset could an industry convince itself that it could … Continue reading →

Posted in Archon Corp., Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Cannery Casino Resorts, CityCenter, Colony Capital, Cosmopolitan, Current, Dining, Economy, Encore, Entertainment, Environment, Fontainebleau, Harrah's, history, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Regulation, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, Taxes, The Strip, Tourism, Wall Street | 4 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on August 4, 2010 by David McKee

“It’s a risky story. We weren’t overly impressed with the results.” — Stern, Agee & Leach‘s David Bain on MGM Resorts International‘s 2Q10 revenues. CityCenter (left) lost $128 million in the quarter.

Posted in CityCenter, Current, Economy, MGM Mirage, Wall Street | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Bad quarters for MGM, Boyd

Posted on August 3, 2010 by David McKee

Undershooting Wall Street‘s expectations for 2Q10, MGM Resorts International missed analyst projections and also took a big-ass writedown on CityCenter (above) consigning $1.2 billion to the dustbin. Hotel occupancy was up from 85% to 93% overall (although RevPAR slipped a … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boulder Strip, Boyd Gaming, CityCenter, Current, Downtown, Economy, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tourism, Wall Street | 5 Comments

Business is booming … overseas

Posted on August 3, 2010 by David McKee

At some point, Peking may decide that Macao is overheated but for the moment it’s simply red-hot. Revenues vaulted 70% last month, to the tune of $2 billion U.S. dollars (or $25,435,856,924 Zimbabwean), the second-best number in Macanese history. Wynn … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Current, Economy, Genting, International, James Packer, Lawrence Ho, Macau, Marketing, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Movies, Pansy Ho, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Stanley Ho, Steve Wynn, Technology, Tourism, Transportation, Wall Street | 1 Comment

CityCenter: Can’t stop the bashing

Posted on August 3, 2010 by David McKee

Won’t someone please give Sharron Angle a hammer so she can go over to Aria and start smashing windows or something? (If it lets more light into that damnably dank casino floor, she’s got my vote.) The woman’s carrying a … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, CityCenter, Current, Economy, Election, Harrah's, Harry Reid, MGM Mirage, Movies, Reno, Steve Wynn, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Fertittas win: Boyd calls it quits

Posted on July 30, 2010 by David McKee

Boyd Gaming threw in the towel today, ending its pursuit of two-thirds of Station Casinos‘ assets. This makes it virtually a shoo-in that sock-puppet bidder Fertitta Gaming will prevail at the upcoming bankruptcy auction. The latter, a front for Station … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Colony Capital, Current, Economy, Herbst Gaming, MGM Mirage, Regulation, Station Casinos, Wall Street | 6 Comments

Like I’ve been saying …

Posted on July 27, 2010 by David McKee

… strength in hotel rates is a top-down proposition, with such “recovery” as we’re seeing being driven by high-end product. The renewed strength in the business-travel sector also jibes with reports we’ve been getting from Las Vegas Sands and MGM … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Economy, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Adelson fires Sands China CEO; Kenny Guinn, 1936-2010

Posted on July 23, 2010 by David McKee

It’s getting rather slippery on the tiled floors of Venelazzo and its Macao offshoots, what will the frequent bloodbaths that are becoming a hallmark of Sheldon Adelson‘s reign as creator and CEO of Las Vegas Sands. The victim sent over … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Harrah's, history, International, Macau, MGM Mirage, Midnight Jim Gibbons, Monte Carlo fire, Politics, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Sports, Station Casinos, Taxes, The Strip, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 23, 2010 by David McKee

“I think we can say we’re definitely not interested [in Station Casinos] … We’re not really aware The Rio is for sale.” — Penn National Gaming CFO William Clifford during what must have been a very confusing conference call. You … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Harrah's, Penn National, Station Casinos, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Chris Christie, rock star

Posted on July 22, 2010 by David McKee

New Jersey‘s outspoken governor lays down some righteous grooves at Meadowlands, including telling the horsey set what it needs to hear: “I don’t have the money to be subsidizing failure.” Gov. Chris Christie on New Jersey horseracing: this industry has … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Colony Capital, Columbia Sussex, Current, Economy, Entertainment, Goldman Sachs, Horseracing, Movies, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Taxes, Technology, Tourism, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 22, 2010 by David McKee

“The commission’s vision for revitalizing Atlantic City is encouraging. One thing we know is we can no longer use Band-Aid approaches in an attempt to heal a city suffering with a gaping wound.” — state Sen. Jeff Van Drew (D), … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Current, Economy, Encore, Politics, Steve Wynn, Wall Street | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Louisiana treads (oily) water

Posted on July 20, 2010 by David McKee

It’s a rare day when one can report that a casino market was down year/year but did better than expected. If you were looking for serious Deepwater Horizon spillover into June’s casino numbers, you’d be surprised. Statewide, casinos were -4.5% … Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Boyd Gaming, Current, Dining, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Harry Reid, Louisiana, M Resort, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Politics, Racinos, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off on Louisiana treads (oily) water

Galaviz hearts Singapore — with caution

Posted on July 19, 2010 by David McKee

Analysts continue to do a 180 from their cautious outlook on Singapore five years ago. Among those raining plaudits on the early performance of the city-state’s two megaresorts is Jonathan Galaviz of Galaviz & Co. He estimates that Singapore will … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Genting, International, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Tourism, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Next victim: Westin Casuarina?

Posted on July 19, 2010 by David McKee

Here’s a story that seems to have slipped past all of us. On March 31, the Westin Casuarina was placed on “Imminent Default” status by Fitch Ratings. The property was running at 61.5% occupany, with ADRs of $119 and 61.55 … Continue reading →

Posted in Columbia Sussex, Economy, Harrah's, Lake Tahoe, The Strip, Tourism, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street | 3 Comments

CityCenter: Stop the madness!

Posted on July 16, 2010 by David McKee

Just when I thought I was out of the Sharron Angle vs. CityCenter insanity, they pull me back in. As I feared, the mythical “CityCenter bailout” has become a meme in that echo chamber of misinformation and urban mythology, cable … Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Cosmopolitan, Current, Election, Fontainebleau, Harry Reid, MGM Mirage, Taxes, The Strip, TV, Wall Street | 9 Comments

Margaritaville on the rocks

Posted on July 15, 2010 by David McKee

Long-serving — and long-suffering — Biloxi Mayor A.J. Holloway has lost patience with Harrah’s Entertainment. He is convinced that the metamorphosis of Grand Casino Biloxi into Margaritaville Casino is kaput and that Harrah’s will tear down what little it has … Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Animals, Archon Corp., Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Carl Icahn, Charity, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Encore, Environment, Fontainebleau, George Maloof, Harrah's, Holy Cow, Indiana, International, Louisiana, MGM Mirage, Mississippi, Movies, Pennsylvania, Pets, Phil Ruffin, Planet Hollywood, Plaza, Riviera, Sahara, Sports, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tourism, TV, Wall Street | 5 Comments