Featured Articles Archive - Page 533

PokerStars has 25 billion reasons to celebrate

PokerStars is close to hitting another milestone and is inviting everyone to the bash. The world's biggest poker site is about to deal its 25 billionth hand and is hosting the "25 Billion Bash" to celebrate the achievement. Of course, the winner of the "Mega Milestone Hand" will come away with a bonanza of prizes. But even for PokerStars, the prize package is huge...read more

LV Sands profits continue to plummet

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Declining revenues in Macau and one-time charges sent Las Vegas Sands Corp. to a net loss of $111.3 million in the fourth quarter, the company said Wednesday. The casino operator said its overall company revenues were up 4.3 percent because of increases in business at The Venetian and Palazzo on the Strip...read more

News not all that bad for Ameristar

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Wall Street found positive news in Ameristar Casinos' fourth-quarter earnings announcement Tuesday despite the Las Vegas-based casino operator's net loss of $101.1 million. Ameristar, which does not operate a Las Vegas resort, reported a loss of $1.77 per share, reversing net income of $8.2 million, or 14 cents per share, a year earlier...read more

Playing It Smart: Setting rational goals for your next playing session

Casinos are built on the laws of large numbers that validate the veracity of averages. The theoretical models and the associated math are rock-solid. With enough bets over enough time, on propositions whose probabilities are known precisely, the bosses and their bean counters know what fraction of the action they'll keep...read more

Wynn scores big again with unveiling of Encore

LAS VEGAS – From the outside they mirror each other with their striking, bronze towers that rise high into the Las Vegas skyline. Step inside Wynn Las Vegas and the newly opened, Encore Las Vegas, however, and it's quite clear that the two casino-resorts are far from identical twins...read more

Penn National still interested in Strip property

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Casino operator Penn National, which quashed rumors last month that it was buying The Mirage, said Thursday it was still interested in owning a casino on the Strip. During a conference call with analysts and investors, Penn National Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Peter Carlino said prices were too high. "We would love to get a Strip property," Carlino said...read more

Wynn gets praise for cuts

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Not surprisingly, Wall Street lauded plans by Wynn Resorts Ltd. to reduce expenses by $75 million to $100 million annually at Wynn Las Vegas and the recently opened $2.3 billion Encore. The casino operator said Tuesday it will cut salaries, trim workweeks and suspend 401(k) contributions, but not impose layoffs, something casinos operated by other Strip gaming companies instituted throughout 2008. "Wynn's decision .....read more

One week in London for ICEi and CAP Euro and...YOU'RE NO LONGER BANNED!

Seducing Caselli I am sure you are wondering...what on earth did it take to get my CAP Euro ban lifted? Seducing Caselli. Easy! Just kidding. It was largely due to Alex Pratt, one of my very good friends who helped smooth out some of the tension between CAP and GPWA during this London event...read more

Bally Technologies posts record quarter

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Slot machine maker Bally Technologies said Tuesday it had a record second quarter despite the economic slowdown that has broadly affected the gaming industry. Bally Chief Executive Officer Richard Haddrill called the three months ended Dec...read more

Moody's downgrades MGM Mirage debt

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Moody's Investors Service today downgraded casino operator MGM Mirage $7.8 billion debt load Tuesday, believing that the company's earnings in 2009 will fall below previously anticipated results. Moody's, in reducing the company's corporate family rating to B1 Ba3, said the recession is causing consumers to reduce discretionary spending. "Additionally, the company has been unable to raise the targeted $3 billion in capital for its CityCenter development, and so its cash needs have increased," Moody's senior credit officer Peggy Holloway said in a statement. She anticipated that MGM Mirage's debt to cash flow ratios will exceed "a level inconsistent with its prior rating." In December, MGM Mirage announced it had sold Treasure Island for $775 million to former New Frontier owner Phil Ruffin...read more