August, you were amazing.
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released its official Atlantic City casino gross revenue numbers earlier this month.
The result? Atlantic City casinos grossed more than 22 percent above the previous year and nearing $300 million in total revenue, confirming the incredible AC renaissance.
DGE Director David Rebuck told the Press of Atlantic City that the YOY growth was of the kind the city hasn’t seen in years.
“It is an exciting time for Atlantic City and we look forward to continued revenue growth going forward,” he said.
August’s numbers were just a few percentage points away from doubling the July YOY numbers, in which the city’s nine casinos saw a 12.8-percent jump in revenue.
Breaking down the numbers: Borgata, Tropicana lead the way
When Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City and Ocean Resort Casino opened in June, there was some speculation as to how their presence would affect the revenue for the city’s other properties.
Turns out not much has changed in terms of revenue rankings. Borgata and Tropicana are at the top of the August revenue numbers:
- Borgata: $76.million
- Tropicana: $35.788 million
From there, Harrah’s, Hard Rock, Golden Nugget, and Caesars round out the casinos who earned more than $25 million:
- Harrah’s: $31.580 million
- Hard Rock: $31.246 million
- Golden Nugget: $28.910 million
- Caesars: $27.956 million
What’s interesting is that Harrah’s nudged ahead of Hard Rock, whereas Hard Rock pulled ahead of Harrah’s in July.
The final three AC casinos revealed interesting data as it relates to one of the pressing questions about the future: Can the city sustain nine casinos?
- Ocean Resort: $20.512 million
- Bally’s AC: $18.982 million
- Resorts: $18.106 million
Bally’s and Resorts revenue continues to slide
August marks the second straight month that Bally’s and Resorts experienced drops in their year-on-year revenue.
In August:
- Bally’s: – 9.4%
- Resorts: -2.9%
In July:
- Bally’s: -9.9%
- Resorts -12.7%
A further look into the numbers reveals that Bally’s and Resorts saw slightly bigger losses in their casino win as compared to their overall revenue, which includes NJ gambling sites and sports wagering.
Bally’s August casino win was down 10.4 percent over the previous year. Resorts’ casino win was down 3.4 percent over the previous year.
In our conversations with experts such as David Schwartz (UNLV) and Rummy Pandit (Stockton University), the question has always been whether or not the market can sustain nine casinos.
So far, the revenue numbers indicate that it can. Hard Rock and Ocean Resort are holding their own in their respective revenue tiers. On the other hand, Bally’s and Resorts’ AC revenue is dropping slowly each month, so their future remains to be seen.
In-person NJ sports betting surges
In August, six AC casinos operated land-based sportsbooks. Of those six, Borgata and Ocean Resort Casino garnered the highest revenue totals at $855,152 and $519,563, respectively.
While Ocean Resort’s revenue fared well compared to other casinos, it saw about a 50-percent decline over its July numbers in which Borgata was the only other casino running a sportsbook for the entire month.
The state’s two racetracks, Meadowlands and Monmouth Park, however, pulled in nearly $4 million in NJ sports betting revenue.
The overall land-based sports betting revenue total minus online wagers was $6.059 million in August.
Since NJ sports betting began in June, it has generated $8 million for the Atlantic City casino industry. And that number is expected to grow in September.