Boyd Gaming jumped into the credit markets Wednesday, issuing $600 million of new debt due in 2025.
The regional casino operator announced a $500 million debt offering in the morning but upped the figure by $100 million once the markets closed in the afternoon. Boyd said it expects to close the transaction by May 21.
Boyd, which has 29 gaming properties in 10 states, intends to use the proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including working capital.
The company could see its casinos in Mississippi and Louisiana reopen by the end of May. Boyd furloughed most of its 25,000-person workforce on April 10, management took pay cuts, and the company drew down $670 million of its credit line to give a total of $831.2 million in liquidity to weather the spending of more than $3 million a day to cover costs.
Boyd joins Penn National Gaming – which is raising $600 million through a combination stock sale and debt – as the latest gaming company to raise new debt from the credit markets. In recent weeks, Wynn Resorts, MGM Resorts International, and Everi Holdings have tapped into financing avenues.
The markets have been open to new debt offerings even as the nationwide casino industry has been shut down since mid-March in an effort to slow the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. However, commercial and tribal casinos in several jurisdictions have begun to reopen with limited operations this month, with additional limited reopenings planned into June.
Shares of Boyd closed at $15.38 on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, down $1.32 or 7.9% on a day the Dow fell more than 500 points.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
