Casino winnings slow in July

September 13

In Nevada, after months of double-digit increases, winnings in the state's casinos slumped in July by 1.5% when compared with a year ago.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported Friday that casinos statewide won $812.4 million before taxes and business expenses. This is $13 million less than what was reported a year ago.

Every Las Vegas area casino zone, including the Strip, contributed to the decline.

There are said to be many factors that fueled the decrease. Slot machine revenue, which is always the largest earner of winnings, was down slightly, casinos were unlucky at blackjack and race and sports book revenue was down as casinos paid off professional basketball futures bets.

Gov. Kenny Guinn says that Nevada's economy is strong and that he is confident this latest downturn is only temporary.

Senior research analyst for the board, Frank Streshley said the volume of play on the slot machines was up 7.7% and an increase of 13.9% on the games.

The board said statewide slot machine winnings fell to $564.7 million, off 2.9%. Table game gross revenue remained basically the same with a win of $239.1 million, up 0.5%.
Statewide revenue from blackjack fell by $11.7 million. Streshley said the casinos traditionally have a 'hold' percentage of 13%, however, it fell to 10.4% in July.
 

At the same time, the gross revenue earned by casinos from baccarat grew by 44.8% during the month, winnings from blackjack fell 12.2%, craps gained 9.7%, roulette also gained 7.1%, but the sports pool winnings statewide fell by 83.5%.

Streshley also mentioned that the sports pool revenue dropped because the casinos paid off futures bets and wagers on the pro basketball season that ended in June.

In four of the first six months of this year, the casinos statewide reported double-digit increases in gross revenue. The last time there was a decrease in the year-over-year comparison was in December 2003 when the win fell by 1%.

Casinos along the Las Vegas Strip reported winnings of $393.8 million, down 0.7%. Five of the six months this year have seen double-digit increases at the Strip casinos. The last decrease was in December, which was down 0.8%.

Slot win at the 43 Strip casinos fell 2.1% to $228.8 million. Table revenue produced $160.3 million, up 0.3%.

Gross revenue from baccarat jumped 48.1% but blackjack winnings fell 16%. Craps revenue rose 15 percent and roulette was up 3.3%. Winnings in the sports pool at Strip casinos fell 173.8%.

The 19 casinos in downtown Las Vegas registered $53 million in winning, down 2.6%. Slot machine revenue fell 10 percent to $37.3 million but game and table win increased 19.7% to 14.1 million.

North Las Vegas' (off Strip) 11 casinos faired worse, reporting $17.4 million in winnings, down 13.9 percent. Slot machine revenue fell 17.6%,  but their table games increased 14.1%.

However, Laughlin casinos in Southern Nevada reported a different trend, with gross revenue up 9.4% to $48.6 million. Their slot winnings came up 10.4% at the 10 casinos and their table game revenue increased 2.1%.

The 33 clubs along the Boulder Strip produced $509.1 million, a decline of 16% from a year ago. It was the biggest drop since August 2002 when it fell 16.3%. Their table gross revenue rose 3.9% to $6.9 million, but their slot win dropped 19% to $42.6 million.

The board said the seven casinos in Mesquite won $9.8 million, up 16.5%. Revenue from the games fell 20.2%, however their slot winnings were up 22.3%.

The 68 clubs in the balance of Clark County reported $74.3 million in gross win, up 3.4%. Slot machine winning rose 2% to $63 million and game revenue moved up 12.8% to $10.7 million.