As they come into the backstretch on the bidding for a racino at New York‘s Aqueduct Racetrack, one contender has pulled out of the race: Steve Wynn. Did he balk at the $200 million upfront fee? Penn National Gaming basically set the ante and now Gov. David Paterson wants its rivals to match it. Even without Wynn in the running, the Aqueduct steeplechase still features a field of thoroughbreds, including MGM Mirage and Harrah’s Entertainment, plus a couple of up-and-comers.
Among the latter is the Seminole Tribe. Will Empire State politicos take sides in an intra-Florida dispute (where, in a related story, parimutuel casino operators find themselves with an unlikely new threat: Miami International Airport)?
Try, try again. Who says the recession hasn’t been good for Golden Nugget owner Tilman Fertitta? A falling market has enabled him to knock $6.25/share off his LBO offer for Landry’s Restaurants. A tidy $1.2 billion nets him sole control of two casinos and a plethora of restaurants.
If Peking is curbing access by its citizens to Macao, the effects have yet to be felt. October revenue jumped 42% year/year and 18% from September. While Venetian Macao lost market share, that was more than offset by growth at Sands Macao (above, up 13%) and especially at newbie Four Seasons Macao & Plaza Casino (38%), driving a huge revenue increase. The latter opened considerable daylight between Sands (24% market share) and Wynn Macau (12%), although Stanley Ho remains #1 in the region.
