Covid-19 rattles oddsmakers; No joy in Vegas

Caesars Entertainment‘s agreement to buy William Hill got a look-see from JP Morgan analyst Daniel Politzer and he liked what he saw. Now Caesars owns 100% of its sports-betting operation, plus William Hill assets in non-Caesars locations, such as Internet gambling in Michigan. “CZR will benefit from a more defined brand strategy that paves the way for enhanced media partnerships, and customer experience should improve from a fully integrated, single-wallet product that seamlessly integrates online sports betting and iGaming,” wrote Politzer. He believes Caesars can capture 10%-15% market share and reduce its customer-capture costs through the use of Caesars Rewards. This also unifies the CZR/CBS and Hill/ESPN affiliations, a powerful combination of platforms. As expected, Caesars will issue $2 billion in debt secured by William Hill’s international business, which Caesars has already started shopping. So, if they sell them, what secures the $2 billion then? Anyway, the deal is not expected to close for as much as a year, so Caesars has plenty of time to work out the financing.

Did Twin River Holdings get conned? It’s paying $120 million for Jumer’s Casino Rock Island, in Illinois. This is a devil of a time to be entering the Land of Lincoln’s casino market, Jumer’s best days are behind it (it used to benefit powerfully from being right on the freeway into Illinois from Iowa) and it’s an awfully high purchase price compared to what Twin River committed to Bally’s Atlantic City. Unless your casino is called “Rivers Casino Des Plaines,” these are not happy days in which to be running a gambling house in Illinois. We think Twin River should have just said no but hope that it can turn around Jumer’s faltering fortunes. Said Twin River CEO George Papanier, “we believe there is an opportunity to improve operations and enhance revenues at the property which would allow us to lower our acquisition multiple.” They’ll need to. Papanier inherits 870 slots, 25 table games and 205 hotel rooms.

Bloomberg laid it right on the line: “With Covid 19 tanking tourism, Las Vegas saw the biggest jump in apartment tenants who have stopped paying rent.” 10.5% are delinquent, up from 4% a year ago and closing in on New Orleans‘ 13%. Said RealPage economist Greg Willett, “There’s more stress in hospitality-focused and expensive markets,” and Las Vegas qualifies on both counts. Sin City appears to be going to Hell in a hand basket in other ways. A recent visitor reports on Vegas Message Board: “Staying at the Hilton Grand Vacations at the Flamingo. The Linq was barely passable. Gangs of people crowded the streets. I don’t think any were gamblers, it was a disaster waiting to happen. A shooting in front of Battistas one night and one in the front of the Flamingo. I can just tell you the weekend nights were scary, I mean you really had to be mindful of your surroundings. I have been to Vegas at least 100 times in my 66 years and never felt so uncomfortable. I don’t know the reason, I just did not like it. Will it keep me from going?? Hell no, I love the place, but it is not your parents Vegas right now, that is the honest truth.” No wonder Las Vegas Metro doesn’t have time to chase phantoms from the Sept. 6 Wynncore brawl.

Can’t trust the U.S. Postal Service with your ballot? What about your lottery winnings? Florida resident Sue Burgess is out $1,000 after submitting her winning ticket through certified mail. That’s certified mail, mind you. Burgess had a week to get her ticket submitted, the envelope made it as far as the Tallahassee post office, then vanished. Did somebody “throw it in a river”? That was six weeks ago. Burgess would have been better off delivering the ticket in person (an option for winners). For its part, USPS is offering no recompense but says,”We apologize to this specific customer for any inconvenience they may have experienced. In this specific instance, we are continuing to work with the lottery office to confirm receipt of the mailpiece.” Too little, much too late.

Jottings: Congratulations to the Las Vegas Aces for achieving the finals of the WNBA playoffs. The Aces got name-checked by Kate McKinnon on the latest Saturday Night Live, hopefully further raising their (well-deserved) profile … At the other end of the spectrum, the Las Vegas Raiders literally fumbled away a potential upset of the Buffalo Bills. It did not help that the Raider secondary couldn’t cover a baby with a blanket … Our National Pet Day mascot, Tommy, was diagnosed today with terminal kidney failure. It’s pretty gloomy here at S&G headquarters.