MGM Resorts International’s executive team is looking to carry over the momentum of a record 2024 into the new year.
During the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 earnings call, MGM Resorts President and CEO Bill Hornbuckle said looking at the rest of the first quarter and into the remainder of the year, there are multiple positive indicators to keep the trend going. Revenue is up at MGM Resorts' domestic operations in January, and average daily rates are on pace to continue to grow for most of 2025.
“We are bringing to fruition our goal of being the industry leader in groups and meetings with over 2.2 million room nights on the books for 2025,” he said.
In December, MGM Resorts closed on its strongest convention-booked month ever, Hornbuckle said. Bookings in December were 43% higher than its previous record month.
The company’s first year with Marriott International outperformed original expectations with more than 660,000 room nights stayed as well as higher tracked spend in the leisure package rooms it looks to displace, he said.
“Importantly, we see further runway to grow in 2025 since all of our properties will be live for a full year of bookings,” he said.
Las Vegas properties faced difficult comparison in the fourth quarter, so revenue was down 6% and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent costs was down 11%, Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Halkyard said.
Excluding some variances, including the F1 race, the underlying trend remains solid as evidenced by several data points, including the all-time quarterly record domestic slot win in the fourth quarter, he said.
“We concluded the quarter and the year on a strong note with December occupancy and ADRs up single digits over 2023 and an all-time record for monthly domestic slot handle and slot win,” he said. “This momentum gives us optimism that MGM's Las Vegas operations can grow in 2025, with the exception of the challenging comparisons this month of February, of course.”
The impact of the Super Bowl moving to New Orleans from Las Vegas this year came in as estimated in November at about $65 million, Halkyard said.
Portfolio management
MGM Resorts is continuing to reinvest into its portfolio, Hornbuckle said. Through 2024, it worked on the broad improvement of the Bellagio, renovating all of its suites and adding new food-and-beverage offerings and refreshing its premium gaming spaces.
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas completed its transitioned to MGM Rewards.
Last year, the company completed its $100 million investment in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, he said. The property is now welcoming new and existing convention customers to the space.
During the fourth quarter of 2024, MGM Resorts rebranded its Delano Tower at Mandalay Bay to the W Las Vegas, which has significant brand recognition and can now benefit from Marriott’s distribution system and loyalty program, he said.
The renovation project at the MGM Grand is making progress, with 600 rooms already back online for guests, Halkyard said.
Regional updates
At MGM Resorts’ domestic properties outside of Las Vegas, revenue grew by 7% and adjusted EBITDAR increased by 21% during the quarter, Halkyard said. The MGM Grand Detroit drove much of that increase due to strong execution and recovery from the previous year’s labor strike.
In Macau, MGM Resorts’ two properties achieved their best-ever full-year segment adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent costs in the history of its MGM China operations.
The MGM Cotai and MGM Macau continue to be high-performing outliers in the market, Halkyard said. Its first resident show at MGM Cotai, Macau 2049, and the Polyart Museum at MGM Macau have helped drive non-gaming revenue and visitation to the area.
“We grew market share in December to over 16%, and we concluded the year at similar levels,” he said. “We remain confident and believe we have proven that we have sustainable market share in the mid-teens, driven by our strong product innovation teams and the focus on the premium mass market.”
MGM Resorts’ integrated resort project in Osaka, Japan, continues to advance as planned, Hornbuckle said. The ground preparation is expected to be complete this year with main construction to start shortly after. The groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for April 24. The opening of its subway in January marked an important infrastructure milestone by enhancing transportation options for future guests.
For the company’s MGM Empire City project in Yonkers, New York, MGM Resorts will submit its request for application by the middle of the year, he said. The company is actively engaged with the city government on zoning.
By the numbers
MGM Resorts reported consolidated net revenue of $17.2 billion, up from $16.2 billion the year before, according to the company's earnings release. It reported net income of $747 million, down from $1.1 billion in 2023 primarily due to the gain on its sale of the Gold Strike Tunica in 2023.
During the fourth quarter, MGM Resorts' Las Vegas hotel operations saw occupancy reach 94%, up from 91% the year before. Average daily rate dipped 8% to $271, and revenue per available room fell by 6% to $254. Rooms revenue amounted to $822 million, down 6% year over year.
As of press time, MGM Resorts' stock was trading at $39.30, down 14.2% year over year. The NYSE Composite Index was up 17.7% for the same period.