Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Rise After Macau Gambling Gains 20%
Las Vegas Sands Corp., Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) and Melco Crown (MPEL) Entertainment Ltd. rose in New York trading yesterday after gambling revenue in Macau increased almost 20 percent to a record in December from a year earlier.
Las Vegas Sands gained 5.6 percent to close at $48.75 in New York, the biggest jump since Nov. 30. Wynn Resorts, also based in Las Vegas, added 5 percent to $118.07, the biggest increase since Oct. 25. Hong Kong-based Melco Crown’s American depositary receipts advanced 3.1 percent to $17.36. Each ADR represents three shares.
Casino revenue in the Chinese city jumped to 28.2 billion patacas ($3.5 billion) in December, trumping a record 27.7 billion patacas in October. Full-year revenue increased 14 percent to 304 billion patacas, also a record, from 268 billion patacas in 2011, according to data from Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau yesterday.
Macau authorities were expecting 800,000 border crossings from Jan. 1-3 for the New Year’s holiday, Union Gaming analyst Grant Govertsen said in a report.
Gambling revenue is climbing as operators, including Sands China Ltd. (1928), Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. (27) and Melco Crown, expand in the only place in China where casinos are legal. Middle-class Chinese tourists have helped fuel growth even as high-stake bettors have cut spending.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rob Golum in Los Angeles at rgolum@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net
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