Tropicana Entertainment posts $20 million third-quarter profit

LAS VEGAS -- Tropicana Entertainment LLC's third-quarter profit was helped significantly by lower interest expenses, the Las Vegas-based gaming company said Wednesday.

The company, which has casinos in Nevada, New Jersey, Louisiana, Indiana and Aruba, said it earned $20.8 million in the third quarter, up from $14.9 million in the same period last year.

Interest expense dropped from $8.1 million to $3.6 million because of a new $175 million credit agreement that cut Tropicana Entertainment's rate from 15 percent to 7.5 percent. The credit agreement matures in March 2018.

As of Sept. 30, the company had $176.1 million in debt, the company said in an earnings filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Tropicana Entertainment's revenue fell from $175.4 million to $171.5 million amid continued difficult operating conditions in New Jersey and Nevada.

The company, which operates three casinos in Laughlin and Lake Tahoe, said third-quarter revenue declined slightly from $33.2 million to $32.7 million.

Tropicana Entertainment said the Tropicana Atlantic City earned $83.2 million, down from $86 million in the third quarter of last year.

Superstorm Sandy, which struck the East Coast last week, did not affect third-quarter results. The company said it was "assessing the effect that the storm, and associated closure and loss of business" will have on fourth-quarter results.

"Although we do not believe that we incurred any significant damage to our Tropicana Atlantic City property, regional storm damage ... is likely to deter customers from visiting Atlantic City and Tropicana Atlantic City for some period of time," the company said in Wednesday's earnings report.