Viva Las Vegas! Strip Revenue Up 7% In September

With revenue in the world's largest gaming destination — Macau, China — still depressed, casino investors are looking to the state of Nevada for some much-needed revenue growth this year.

The state's gaming control board has released its report on gaming revenue for the month of September. Here's a brief overview.

The Numbers

Nevada's non-restricted gaming licensees reported a total taxable revenue of $921.1 million in September, a 2.7 percent year-over-year increase.

September’s number mark’s a continuation of the relatively strong performance by Nevada casinos in the past year. Statewide revenue is up 2.3 percent year-over-year since October 1, 2015.

Las Vegas Strip

More than $514 million (about 56 percent) of Nevada's total gaming win in September came from the Las Vegas Strip.

Shareholders of strip mega-resort operators Wynn Resorts, Limited WYNN, Las Vegas Sands Corp. LVS, MGM Resorts International MGM and Caesars Entertainment Corp CZR are watching Strip numbers closely.

Win numbers for the Vegas Strip were up 7.0 percent year-over-year in September following August’s 14.7 percent decline. In the past 12 months, Strip revenue is up about 2.2 percent year-over-year.

Downtown Vegas

Historic Downtown Las Vegas, which has performed extremely well in recent months, followed a solid August with a 3.3 percent year-over-year revenue gain in September.

In the past 12 months, Downtown Vegas revenue is up 4.3 percent, one of the strongest growth numbers of any region in the state.

Shares of Boyd Gaming Corporation BYD, which operates three downtown casinos, are down 11.8 percent in the past six months. Boyd will release its Q3 results on November 1, followed by a conference call and webcast the same day.

Stock Movements

• Boyd was down 2.32 percent at $18.07.
• Caesars was down 1.05 percent at $7.07.
• Las Vegas Sands was down 1.91 percent at $56.91.
• MGM was down 0.5 percent at $26.
• Wynn was seen down 1.57 percent at $94.25.