Caesars Entertainment Inc has reported its operating results for the third quarter of 2021, noting it is ‘encouraged’ by the early results of its rebranded Caesars Sportsbook launch and that it is looking forward to launching in additional states in 2022.
However, during its earnings call for the quarter, the operator said that a sale of a Las Vegas strip casino property early next year is part of a larger strategy to reduce its debt following a Q3 net loss.
For its Q3 financial period, ending September 30, Caesars declared net revenues of $2.7bn, an improvement on Q3 2020’s $1.4bn. Its Las Vegas properties returned revenue of close to $1bn, with its regional performance increasing to $1.54bn (Q3 2020: $1.05bn) and Caesars Digital improving to $96m (Q3 2020: $39m).
The operator reported a net loss of $233m for the quarter, compared to a net loss of $926m for Q3 2020.
CEO Tom Reeg commented: “Our third quarter operating results reflect an all-time quarterly EBITDA record in our Las Vegas segment and a new third quarter EBITDA record for our regional segment.
“We are encouraged by the early results from our rebranded Caesars Sportsbook launch and we are looking forward to launching additional states by year end and into 2022.”
During its earnings call, Caesars said that natural disasters such as Hurricane Ida and a fire in Tahoe affected the group’s performance during Q3. It was also noted that a sale of a Las Vegas strip casino property in early 2022 forms part of a wider plan to reduce its debt.
Being asked about the potential sale of a second Vegas-based facility, Reeg stated: “We have never said that we plan to sell a second property, nor do we expect to at this point.
“We would expect to sell a single property and be done, but we will assess where we are in the market [and] what our balance sheet looks like afterwards, and how we feel about our future prospects, but I think it will be limited to one asset.”
Q3 also saw Caesars announce the appointment of Sandra Douglass Morgan to its board of directors effective November 7.
