Golden Entertainment reports Q4 hit from Covid restrictions

March 12, 2021
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Casino operator says vaccine rollout will bring pent-up demand to its Las Vegas properties.

Golden Entertainment, Inc. reported financial results for Q4 and full year ending 31 December, 2020.

The company owns 10 casino resorts, nine in Southern Nevada and one in Maryland.

In Q4 2020 Golden had a net loss of $18.4m, compared to a net loss of $7.6m in Q4 2019.

For full-year 2020, the company posted a loss of $136.6m, after a loss of $39.5m in the previous year.

Q4 2020 revenue was $205.6m, down from $242.1m in Q4 2019. Adjusted EBITDA was $38.9m in Q4 2020, down from $43.1m in the same quarter of 2019.

Golden’s revenue from casinos dropped to $112.6m in Q4 2020, from $150.2m in Q4 2019.

The company has a distributed gaming business in Nevada and Montana, operating video gaming devices at more than 1,000 locations. It owns more than 60 traditional taverns in Nevada.

Distributed gaming was a bright spot for the company, as Q4 2020 revenue was $93.0m, up from $91.7m in Q4 2019.

Blake Sartini, chairman and CEO of Golden Entertainment, said “tightened operating restrictions” across all of the company’s businesses due to the pandemic began in November and extended through December, impacting results.

“Despite these challenges, our fourth quarter continues to demonstrate that the adjustments we have made to our operations provide a foundation for sustainable margin improvements, which are expected to provide a significant lift to our Adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow as business volume returns to normalized levels,” Sartini said in a statement.

He noted Q4 2020 adjusted EBITDA for Golden’s Las Vegas locals’ casinos increased 21% compared to the same period one year earlier, despite a 6.5% decline in revenue as a result of reduced capacity and other restrictions.

“We are encouraged by the increased business volumes since state restrictions began to ease 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,” Sartini added. “Looking forward, we expect the changes we have made to our cost structure will provide us with sustainable margin improvements, which are expected to result in higher cash generation and allow us to reduce leverage, pursue future strategic initiatives and return capital to shareholders.”

Golden Entertainment operates approximately 16,000 slots, 120 table games, and 6,200 hotel rooms. It also is licensed in Illinois and Pennsylvania to operate video gaming terminals.

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