Although they showered praise on Bally’s Corp., top executives of Gaming & Leisure Properties Inc. remained noncommittal toward funding either Bally’s Las Vegas or, if approved, Bally’s New York. Their remarks were made during an October 31 earnings call.
CEO Peter Carlino acknowledged that GLPI had been fielding calls about the future of its relationship with Bally’s. He said the latter had “strong well-covered bases,” particularly in Las Vegas, and is “positioned very well from a liquidity perspective. We like the relationship that we have.”
Praising Bally’s plan for the Tropicana Las Vegas site, Carlino said it “encompasses what may be possible. We may or may not participate. We may or may not finance that project,” for which Bally’s has penciled in an April 2026 start date.
Addressing the $1.7 billion Bally’s Chicago, which GLPI is building, Carlino said, “The progress has been significant and the pace of construction has picked up dramatically.” He added that three construction cranes have been deployed and that the hotel tower has progressed as far as the first-floor guest rooms.
General Counsel Desirée Burke chimed in that GLPI had shaved $25 million off its 2025 financing commitment to Bally’s Chicago. That investment has been rolled into the next year.
Burke described the investment as stretching into 2027, but Carlino hinted at a soft opening for the megaresort. “I know they’re focused on getting the casino opened as soon as possible.”
A planned $500 million purchase of a Bally’s casino in Lincoln, Rhode Island, remains in abeyance, due to Bally’s need to retire debts to other lenders. Carlino said it was “challenging” for the casino company to obtain a release from debtors to sell the property, “taking the pressure off that story and moving it down the road.”
Chief Operating Officer Brandon Moore added that Lincoln was facing new competitive pressures from the First Light tribal casino in Massachusetts. He said that, anyway, GLPI had plenty of irons in the fire at this time.
Turning to New York City, Moore said there was “no telling whether New York [State] will issue the three licenses,” but there is a strong investment appetite to be in the market, “given the EBITDA potential of the casinos. It definitely remains an attractive expansion market.”
“There is no shortage of money chasing that market,” seconded Carlino. “We could take a part, but we’re certainly not going to be the sole source of what they [Bally’s] are looking for.”
Moore played down concerns over New York City casino licenses being halved from 30 years to 15, explaining that in many casinos, licenses renew even more frequently. “I’m not reading too much into that. Fears related to the licenses seem outlandish. We’re less concerned with that than getting the spend right.”
Vice President of Investor Relations Carlo Santarelli also downplayed fears of Empire State igaming, saying that the Community Advisory Committee process had been a major hurdle, possibly more than was realized and certainly more than igaming.
With regard to GLPI’s relatively new tribal-gaming practice, executives said the real estate investment trust (REIT) will continue to pursue Native American transactions and is fielding more queries. The company is seeking mature assets of tribes looking to diversify their economic base.
Moore added that there is as much risk in commercial gaming as tribal, contrary to conventional wisdom. “We want to make sure that the [rent] coverage is even stronger than in our commercial deals.”
The REIT’s recent preponderance of transactions was explained by Moore as “a lot of hard work came together at the same time.” Carlino enumerated some of the action at the outset, saying, “The market has given us little credit for these deals.”
One of them is GLPI’s financing of Live! Virginia, in Petersburg, built by Cordish Gaming. “These guys are highly capable,” Carlino enthused of Cordish, “highly successful. There’s no opportunity to partner with anybody better. There is no risk whatsoever.”
Overall, Burke said, “If I funded everything out there in the pipeline with debt, we only get to 5.1 times leverage,” noting that it had been as high as 5.5 times in the past. Regional gaming, Carlino added, “has held up very well. Given time, who knows how it will evolve?”
Santarelli said that GLPI’s tenants “had a good negional report … very solid and steady.” He acknowledged the presence of macroeconomic “malaise created by numerous other things.”
While Carlino said the REIT was open to “the right opportunity”on the Las Vegas Strip, “We have a wonderful property in hand,” namely the Tropicana site. Santarelli added GLPI was thinking long-term regarding Vegas, despite recent setbacks to the market, which he regarded as “one of those cycles.”
Concluded Carlino, “I think there’s good days ahead.”
