Bally’s Corp. executives were triumphant in Wednesday’s (31st July) presentation on the future of their company in Chicago, Las Vegas and Online. Overall revenue for the company was $622m, an increase of 3% year on year.
Bally held its second-quarter conference call Wednesday, with CEO Robeson Reeves and president George Papanier as well as CFO Marcus Glover presenting optimistic messages. Two of Bally’s three verticals reported growth year over year in Q2. The casino and North American digital segments both posted increases of respectively 3% and 95 percent. The international interactive segment declined by 7%.
It was primarily due to the launch in March of Rhode Island’s igaming by Reeves. Reeves stated that the UK’s performance was good, but it lagged behind elsewhere (mainly Asia), leading to a decline in overall revenue.
They did not respond to questions or make any comments about Bally’s most important development, the takeover of Standard General last week. The company also did not provide any information on the merger with Queen Casino & Entertainment. Standard General also owns Queen, a casino operator with a combined portfolio of 19 casinos across 11 states.
Sweet Home Chicago
However, they did give additional details about the permanent Chicago casino. Bally’s revealed on 12 July that Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (GLPI), would provide the funding needed to finish the project. Bally’s sold two properties and leased them back to GLPI, and also gave GLPI the option of a third.
Reeves stated that the company was “ready to set up our flag right in the middle of the city”, and is on schedule to open its doors in the third quarter 2026. In the later part of the call, September 2026 came up as an option.
Papanier stated that there was “no doubt” in the end it would come together according to plan and said demolition has begun. He said that after changing the plan and switching to a one-phase construction, the budget for the project is $1.3 billion. These costs will be paid over the next 2 years.
Officials said that as this develops, efforts will also be intensified at the temporary facility located at Medinah Temple. The additional buses will be available to players. This week, a VIP lounge at the casino will open. The casino has had over a million visitors since it opened in September last year.
All three executives praised the overall role played by GLPI to facilitate the project. Glover stated that they were “delighted” to be able to work with GLPI in order to create a permanent Chicago casino.
Las Vegas and New York offer a wide range of possibilities
The call also covered the future of Tropicana in Las Vegas, and the bid of the New York company for a casino in Bronx.
Bally’s in Las Vegas will tear down the casino and build a $1.5bn new stadium for Oakland A’s. In exchange, it will get the rights to build a new building on the property. The stadium is going to cover nine acres of the 36-acre plot that is owned by GLPI.
Reeves stated that the implosion will occur in October. The company “is still assessing” options for the future.
Papanier said that they continue to assess development options on the remaining 36 acres. They remain hopeful about what the future holds for this site.
In New York the discussion was also hypothetical, as licensing decisions will not be expected until next year. Bally’s is the owner of the old Trump Golf Links in the Bronx. The company is proposing to build a casino worth $2.5bn on this site. This is just one of eleven bids competing for three licences in the downstate.
Papanier stated that “we believe our site, Bally’s Golf Links Ferry Point at Ferry Point, is superior than the sites offered to us by our competitors.” He said that although the licensing process is “fluid”, the Bally proposal will “more positively affect the lives of local residents”.
Expected future growth in igaming and sports betting revenues
Bally’s digital initiatives appeared to gain momentum in Q2. Reeves said that the Rhode Island gaming monopoly, which was its first quarter in operation, generated revenue of $6.7m for the second quarter. Glover stated that North American Digital generated an adjusted EBITDAR loss of $7m. Glover said that the company expected “losses will narrow as the year advances, driven by the strong igaming positions in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, now Rhode Island”.
The UK igaming revenues increased by 9% over the past year. Glover described it as the “crown gem” of their international segment.
In the past month, Bally Bet’s sports betting platform went live also in Massachusetts and Maryland. Reeves stated that four additional market launches are planned by the end of this year. The platform’s costs will decrease when it transitions to Kambi or White Hat Gaming services.
Analysts are cautious of future prospects
Truist released a research note immediately following the conference call. The firm stated that all three segments had revenues below the estimates. One topic that was not discussed remained the biggest unknown – Standard General’s takeover/merger. The stock was rated as ‘hold.’
Analysts wrote: “Given that the offer is likely to close in a year, we will remain on hold until further details can be provided.” We lower our EBITDAR for 2024 to the bottom of the guide but do not change our takeout price, which is $18.25.
