Golden Entertainment’s revenue drops by $32 million during quarter

Golden Entertainment’s first-quarter revenue was $207.2 million, a decline of more than $32 million over 2019, the company reported.

“The COVID-19 pandemic forced the mandated closure of all our operations beginning in mid-March, and continues to have an unprecedented impact on our business and the gaming and entertainment industry in general,” Chairman and CEO Blake Sartini said. “This is reflected in our first quarter financial results, notwithstanding our significant year-over-year growth through February prior to the suspension of our operations.

“Since the closures, we have focused on supporting our team members, staying connected to our customers and working to establish appropriate sanitation protocols to offer a safe environment when we are allowed to reopen.”

Golden’s net loss for the first quarter was $32.6 million, compared to a net loss of $8.0 million during the first quarter of 2019.

Casino revenues fell from $151.4 million last year to $128.0 million this year, while distributed gaming revenues were $79.0 million this year, dropping from $88.4 million during the first quarter of 2019.

Golden Entertainment owns several properties across Southern Nevada and in Pahrump, including the Pahrump Nugget and others. The company also has a gaming property in Maryland and has holdings in Montana, along with being licensed in Illinois and Pennsylvania to operate video gaming terminals.

According to Golden Entertainment’s website, it’s the largest distributed gaming operator in the U.S.., where the company operates over 10,500 gaming devices in Nevada and Montana with future plans to expand into Pennsylvania and Illinois.

“In order to preserve the company’s liquidity and position ourselves to withstand the ongoing interruption to our operations, we reduced our cash operating expenses, deferred all capital expenditures and drew down our $200 million availability under our revolving credit facility,” Sartini said.

“The actions that we have taken since the closure of our operations have positioned Golden Entertainment to withstand the current disruption in our business for the foreseeable future.”

Indeed, capital expenditures for the first quarter of 2020 totaled $18.5 million, including payments of approximately $12 million related to renovations at The Strat in Las Vegas, a project that was completed in December 2019. Golden put approximately $101 million into the renovations, which began in June 2018.

As of March 31, the company had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $302 million, including $200 million drawn from the company’s revolving credit facility on March 16. Total debt, including the revolver draw, was $1.36 billion.

“Over the last several years we have executed on a strategic plan to put the company on a path for long-term growth,” Sartini said. “This plan included capital investment to renovate and reposition The Strat, accretive acquisitions that have grown our market share in Laughlin, pursuing new distributed gaming markets and the introduction of our True Rewards one-card loyalty program.

“Our current cash position, capital structure with no near-term debt maturities and diverse operations of wholly owned casinos and distributed gaming operations across multiple jurisdictions will position Golden Entertainment favorably to achieve long-term success as we are allowed to reopen our properties.”

According to a press release, “Golden Entertainment owns and operates gaming properties across two divisions — casino operations and distributed gaming. Golden Entertainment operates approximately 17,600 slots, 150 table games, and 7,300 hotel rooms. Golden Entertainment owns ten casino resorts — nine in Southern Nevada and one in Maryland.

Through its distributed gaming business in Nevada and Montana, Golden Entertainment operates video gaming devices at over 1,000 locations and owns over 60 traditional taverns in Nevada. Golden Entertainment is also licensed in Illinois and Pennsylvania to operate video gaming terminals.”

For more information, head to www.goldenent.com