The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement has released the July revenue totals for casinos in Atlantic City, which shows the area not only saw an increase for the month, but also during the first seven months of 2019. In July, the nine operating casinos in Atlantic City earned $323.3 million. This was an increase of 7.8% from the same month in 2018. For the first seven months of this year, the casinos earned $1.85 billion. This is just over 18% more than the same time frame in 2018.
July Numbers:
Last month was significant for Atlantic City as it was the first month that would equally compare the market including nine casinos plus sports betting since June of last year. The Ocean Casino Resort and the Hard Rock Casino first opened in June of last year.
While the month was a good one in terms of revenues earned, it was the first month in over a year that the percentage increase was not in the double digits. However, an increase is an increase, even if it is just under 8%.
Of the nine operating casinos in the region, five were able to see an increase in revenue when compared to July 2018. These venues were the Borgata, Golden Nugget, Ocean Casino, Hard Rock and the Resorts Casino Hotel.
The Borgata had a stellar month, earning $88 million in gaming revenues, which is a new record for the company. The monthly total was their very best to ever be recorded during their 16-year operating history. Table games helped push the number up, coming in at over $31.8 million, which was a record number as well.
According to The Press of Atlantic City…
Stockton University’s executive director of the Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism, Rummy Pandit, stated that July continued to show a positive growth trend for the Atlantic City area. Pandit stated that the pie is continuing to grow and the slices are getting larger.
Revenue Drop:
It was Bally’s Atlantic City, Harrah’s, Caesars and the Tropicana that saw a drop in revenues for July. These properties are operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp. and Eldorado Resorts Inc., two companies that are currently working on a merger worth $17.3 billion.
Bally’s was down 11.3% when compared to last year, with $18.25 million in earnings. Harrah’s and Caesars were basically neck and neck with $29.8 million and $29.9 million in earnings respectively. Tropicana was able to bring in $32.9 million.