Riverboat casino scuttled; Station: Palms not for sale

Chalk up Nevada‘s second casino casualty to the Coronavirus pandemic. The Colorado Belle in Laughlin terminated its 400 employees and said it would not be reopening when Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) gives the go-ahead for resumption of play, expected to happen sometime around June 1. This is a major setback for Golden Entertainment, which Wall Street analysts had warned was overexposed in Southern Nevada. “We anticipate reduced business levels which will last for an unknown period of time. Due to these challenging circumstances, the company has no current plans to reopen the Colorado Belle property and the layoffs currently in place will extend indefinitely.” So wrote Vice President of Human Resources Katherine Roden. Healthcare benefits remain in place through the end of the month. Golden evidently found that three casinos in Laughlin was one too many, as it continues to own the Edgewater and Aquarius, both expected to reopen on schedule.

* Despite a severe downgrade of its price target by JP Morgan analysts, Station Casinos rebounded before settling in at $12/share. Investor confidence was credited to a commitment by CEO Frank Fertitta III not to sell the mothballed Palms, which is evidently on hold until other Las Vegas Strip casinos have recovered sufficiently to justify its reopening. Speaking of casino resumptions, Penn National Gaming has been marching steadily upward for the past week, currently standing at $27.60/share, largely on news of the company’s reopenings in Louisiana (where business was better than expected) and Mississippi. CEO Jay Snowden‘s statement that “Our geographic diversification across 19 states—with no more than 15% of our revenues being derived from any single state—should be a significant benefit as states begin to open casinos on a sequential basis,” partly contradicts Penn’s assertion that 25% of its exposure is in Mississippi and Louisiana, but Wall Street clearly likes what it’s seeing. Penn has outperformed the casino sector during the pandemic, up 5% against an average -32%.

* Scratch one pending casino deal. Colorado‘s Wildwood Casino will no longer be sold by American Gaming Group to Saratoga Harness Racing. The aborted transaction was blamed on the Covid-19 crisis. “At this time, we believe it’s in the best interest of both companies, and our respective casinos, to cancel the deal so we can focus on doing what’s best for our casinos and our players,” owner Joe Canfora said. In addition to a new, deep-cleaning regimen, “what’s best” includes proceeding with a new, $14 million hotel. Wildwood surveyed its players on what they wanted in a mid-pandemic casino environment and says that, in response, “we’re using their feedback to create a comprehensive health and safety plan that surpasses the county and state, mandatory precautions.” Amen to that.

* Upping the ante in its health-and-safety push, the Culinary Union is lobbying the Nevada Lege, the Las Vegas City Council (good luck there) and Clark County Commission for all workers to be provided with PPE. But the Culinary is not alone. Its appeal is buttressed by the National Nurses United, UFCW 711 and SEIU 1107. The four unions would also “Require customers and guests in the gaming, hospital, and grocery industries to wear masks.”

Said Zachary Pritchett of NNU, “Workplace protections, including optimal PPE, to prevent worker exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19 must be based on the precautionary principle—that employers should not wait for proof of harm before taking action to protect workers—and on the growing scientific knowledge regarding transmission of this virus: that asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic infections play a significant role in the rapid spread of this virus.” Added UFCW local President Mike Gittings, “Working people must have a seat at the table to address this crisis and during the ongoing recovery process.” We’ll see if politicians are receptive.

Jottings: Vegas restaurants continue to drop like flies. Both Miller’s Ale Houses will close permanently, as will three PizzaRev outlets. The latter chain broke the news via Instagram, saying, “Unfortunately due to the impact of COVID-19, some of our locations have permanently closed. Thanks for understanding!” … Handle for NASCAR‘s Cup Series race at Darlington was double the usual amount, showing sports bettors’ hunger for major-league events … Of course, you can still bet on the Remote Darts League, which began play last Monday … To reinforce its considerable liquidity, MGM Resorts International sold down its position in MGM Growth Properties. The transaction raised $700 million … Seminole Hard Rock in Tampa reopens tonight at 7 p.m. … Diamond Jacks is no more but owner Peninsula Pacific is keeping its Louisiana gaming license in its pocket, though it says it has no plans at this time.