Steve Wynn makes out like a bandit; Smoke ’em while you’ve got ’em

Steve Wynn‘s liquidation of his stake in Wynn Resorts may have seemed like an act of petulance but — in light of subsequent movement in the stock market — it appears highly astute. Since El Steve’s big sale WYNN has fallen 40% and can’t get up. It shed another 12% of value after the disappointing 3Q18 results were reported, closing the day at $100.14. T. Rowe Price and Capital Research & Management are left holding the bag as Steve laughs his way to the bank, $900 million richer than if he’d held onto his shares. Barron’s speculates that, having sold high, El Steve would buy back low. If that happens, it’s only inevitable that he’d try to wrest Elaine Wynn‘s hand from the company tiller. Now wouldn’t that be a top-ticket championship bout on the Strip?

If WYNN shareholders thought the weekend would bring some comfort, they weren’t getting any from Credit Suisse analyst Cameron McKnight, who called the company’s Macao guidance “murky.” The company “noted that Golden Week was very strong in October, but business dropped sharply after that and has remained volatile since then … other gaming companies were nowhere near as pessimistic on current trends on their calls.” As for leading economic indicators, balance of trade was described as “improving,” air traffic into Macao was up and more passengers than ever were using the bridge from Hong Kong. On the downside, home prices were dipping 5% and “China has more distressed corporate debt than all emerging market nations combined.” At least Chinese citizens are scheduled to receive a tax break. Any little bit helps.

* MGM Resorts International has thrown another bouquet at Japan, in its continued courtship of the Land of the Rising Sun. Artist Yayoi Kusama is presently taking the U.S. by storm. Her “infinity mirrors” exhibit is soon to open at Atlanta‘s High Museum and MGM is going to present a pair of her installations at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art. Both Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity and Narcissus Garden are described as “a unique wonderland of lights and reflections where guests are invited to experience each artwork from within.”  Says MGM, “Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity is a room of infinite, shimmering lights. Guests step into an enclosed room and are transported into a completely mirrored space, as an array of lights ignite a delicate mirage reflected and repeated on every surface over the span of just under a minute.” The underlying theme is the “dissolution of the self” and was created by Kusama for her 80th birthday. Narcissus Globes is described as being comprised of 750 mirrored globes “in the form of a lake.” MGM may not have chosen to feature Kusama just because they like her style but it’s good to see the Bellagio Gallery getting out on the cutting edge for a change. Bravo.

* Among the things that stay in Vegas is marijuana. It may be legal in the Silver State but once you bring your loco weed to the airport you’re on federal terrain and you stash is illegal contraband. I’ve been told that you might be able to get pot-laced edibles past the TSA, but why take the chance? At least the feds aren’t going to slap the cuffs on you: According to Bloomberg, “In places that have legalized pot, officers typically ask the traveler to dispose of it, store it in a parked vehicle or call a friend to take it, airport representatives said.” Las Vegas authorities have installed green “amnesty boxes” at McCarran International Airport and its rental-center, so you bid your ganga a sad, last-minute farewell. “Abandoned bud is destroyed by the county government.” How? Up in smoke?

Mind you, a stoner is the least of the TSA’s worries. Drunks, especially belligerent ones, rank much higher, as do all those people with water bottles. Tokers are reported as generally having a ‘No problem, man’ attitude toward airport security. Getting out with marijuana may be the easy part: If you’re from overseas and are coming to do business with Nevada’s budding marijuana industry you may be barred from the country. There’s cause for hope in the STATES Act, which has been introduced in Washington with the aim of having all marijuana-related legal issues devolve to the state level. With a new Congress on the way, let’s hope that it passes and the state-vs.-federal patchwork of laws goes away.

* Christmas is usually one of the lowest-revenue periods of the year for the gaming industry. That being the case, who could imagine a Christmas-themed casino? Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee, that’s who. Drawing inspiration from Nuremberg‘s Christmas Market, Full House has converted Cripple Creek, Colorado‘s Imperial Palace to Christmas Casino & Inn at Bronco Billy’s. There are nine nutcracker soldiers, eight reindeer, a 30-timepiece Cuckoo Clock Lounge (which must get very noisy at the stroke of the hour) and a 17-foot-high Christmas Pyramid. Without casting aspersions on casino patrons, Santa Claus will now know where to go in search of naughtiness.