Bets are way off
Big casino players crap out in Q2
Casinos shares ran out of luck Wednesday.
Shares of the major USbased casino operators plunged — with some extending losses into the after-hours trading— on a mix of weak results, tepid forecasts and fear.
Caesars Entertainment fared the worst — diving 15 percent to $9.63 — despite delivering better than expected secondquarter results.
However, when company management told analysts it was being cautious in giving guidance after it “saw some softening” in July and August bookings, investors rushed to cash out.
Shares plunged 24 percent midday, leading to several trading halts.
“This is not some reason to panic or think Vegas is weak,” said Chief Executive Mark Frissora, in an attempt to quell concerns.
“It’s not like you look at one month or two months and then you say, ‘So that’s it for Vegas.’ ”
But Wall Street wasn’t buying it. In fact, across the industry they were selling as weaker-than-expected gambling revenues from Macau — also released Wednesday — pushed investors to fold.
Macau revenues in July climbed 10.3 percent from a year ago but were short of projections of 11.5 percent, according to a Bloomberg survey.
MGM Resorts, which reports quarterly results Thursday, fell 10 percent, to $28.23. Las Vegas Sands and Penn National Gaming were down 4 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively.
Wynn Resorts, whose stock fell 4.1 percent, to $159.99, rounded out the brutal day.
Wynn delivered profit of $1.53 a share, falling way short of estimates of $1.92.
Fewer high rollers at one of the Wynn’s Macau locations, which saw a 15 percent decrease in revenue, was partially blamed for the poor results.