One of the many sculptured angels is shown at Caesars Palace on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015.
Published Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022 | 2:35 p.m.
Updated Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022 | 5:14 p.m.
Last month was the best on record when it comes to earnings for Caesars Entertainment’s properties in Las Vegas, according to the company’s CEO.
While speaking on a quarterly earnings call Tuesday, Tom Reeg said October represented the “strongest month in the history of Las Vegas for Caesars.”
Despite the call being about third quarter — the three-month period that ended Sept. 30 — Reeg wasn’t shy about mentioning October’s results.
For the month that ended Tuesday, Reeg said Caesars tallied over $200 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization — or EBITDA — in October. By comparison, Caesars, which operates eight casino resorts in Las Vegas, recorded $480 in EBITDA for the entire third quarter in the city.
Reeg said group business was “a big part of” the company’s financial showing last month in Las Vegas. Convention and trade show business in Las Vegas, though it has improved greatly from a general standstill during the early months of the pandemic, has lagged when compared to other facets of the city’s economic recovery.
During the call, Reeg mentioned this week’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) automotive-themed trade show, which takes place at the Las Vegas Convention Center. That show alone is expected by organizers to draw close to 135,000 people to Las Vegas.
“Group business was strong in October, and SEMA is here this week, so it’s a culmination of a significant wave of demand,” Reeg said. “We’re thrilled with the way things are coming together.”
For the third quarter, Caesars reported overall net income of $52 million, which follows a net income loss that was reported for the same quarter in 2021. On a per-share basis, Caesars reported a net income of 24 cents, which beat Wall Street expectations.
Through the idea had been floated in recent months to sell one Strip asset, Reeg said Caesars has come to the conclusion that it will not sell any of its Strip resorts.
“We ran into a market where the cash flow of the asset continued to increase and the ability of buyers to raise financing made it an easy decision for us…” Reeg said. “This was a discretionary process for us, (but) it created an unnecessary overhang in the stock. I apologize to all of our shareholders for that. That was a self-inflicted error, and it was me.”
