Pandemic-related limits on casino capacity thinned customer crowds and dampened fourth-quarter results for Golden Entertainment.
The Las Vegas company, which operates 10 hotel-casinos in Southern Nevada and Maryland and slot routes in Nevada and Montana, posted a wider loss than a year ago and lower revenue. The loss-per-share missed Wall Street forecasts, though revenue topped them.
In a statement issued after stock markets closed Thursday, Golden Entertainment said its net loss was $18.5 million, or 66 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with a net loss of $7.7 million, or 28 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts surveyed by Seeking Alpha had, on average, forecast a loss of 36 cents per share.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, a cash-flow measure that excludes one-time costs, fell 9.7% to $38.9 million from $43.1 million.
Revenue fell 15.1% to $205.6 million from $242.1 million, but topped the $200.9 million average forecast of Seeking Alpha-polled analysts.
Golden Entertainment Chief Executive Officer Blake Sartini said adjusted EBITDA was at a record level in October before COVID-19 cases spiked in Nevada, prompting mandates to reduce building capacity. Sartini said his company shifted, tweaking operations to enable sustainable margin improvements that he said will boost adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow as business volume normalizes.
Golden Entertainment said even though fourth-quarter revenue at its Las Vegas local casinos slipped 6.5% year-to-year because of reduced capacity, adjusted EBITDA rose 21%.
“We are encouraged by the increased business volumes since state restrictions began to ease,” Sartini said, “and believe that as the vaccination rollout progresses, Las Vegas will benefit from pent-up demand as well as the resumption of retail and business travel.”
Fourth-quarter casino revenue fell 25% to $112.6 million from $150.2 million a year earlier. Fourth-quarter slot route revenue rose 1.4% to $93 million to $91.7 million.
For the full year ended Dec. 31, Golden Entertainment’s net loss was $136.6 million, or $4.87 per share, compared with a net loss of $39.5 million, or $1.43 per share. Twelve-month revenue fell 26.7% to $694.2 million from $973.4 million.
Golden Entertainment shares rose in regular trading on the Nasdaq on Thursday, rising 56 cents, or 2.2% to close at $26.06. The shares fell after hours, dropping $1.31, or 5.03 percent, to reach $24.75.
