Executives at MGM Resorts International were bullish on their existing as well as future operations in Asia during the company’s latest earnings call.
MGM Resorts President and CEO Bill Hornbuckle praised his company’s efforts in receiving the necessary regulatory approval to move forward on a $10 billion integrated resort project in Osaka, Japan.
In April, Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism certified the area development plan put forward by MGM Resorts' operations in Japan, MGM Japan, and its local partner, financial services firm Orix Group, for the resort on Yumeshima island in Osaka Bay. Until recent years, casinos have been illegal in Japan.
The resort would include the MGM Osaka, MGM Villas and Musubi Hotel, totaling 2,500 hotel guestrooms. It would have several food-and-beverage offerings, retail space, a spa, a fitness center and banquet halls. Plans call for approximately 400,000 square feet of conference facilities that could accommodate more than 6,000 visitors. There would also be 330,000 square feet of exhibition space as well as an innovation laboratory. The Yumeshima Theater will hold approximately 3,500 seats.
“This is one of the final steps to pave us the way for us to begin our development process in Osaka to create what would likely be the first integrated resort in Japan,” Hornbuckle said.
The joint venture has a land lease, and there are several agreements MGM needs to make with the municipality, likely within the next quarter, he said. The company hopes to break ground either late this year or the first part of 2024. The resort will likely open around the first or second quarter of 2030.
Orix will put together bank financing for the project, Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Halkyard said. The work has been underway already, and MGM's equity investments will begin in earnest in late 2024 through 2027. At that point, the company will start to tap into this financing for the completion of the project.
MGM China
MGM Resorts’ operations in China achieved significant recovery during the first quarter after the lifting of public health policy restrictions, Hornbuckle said.
“Our first quarter outperformance in Macau is a direct result of the meticulous preparation and well-executed plan put together by our team in MGM China who ensured that we are ready to capture market share and drive results upon reopening,” he said.
In the quarter, MGM China’s properties generated adjusted property earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent costs of $169 million, or 88% of its level in the first quarter of 2019, he said. It achieved market share of 15%, and the company believes it can sustain that share thanks in part to the addition of 200 gaming tables through its latest concession renewal process.
MGM China enhanced its two properties and remodeled the casino floors at the MGM Macau and MGM Cotai, he said. MGM also added 57 high-end villa suites at MGM Cotai.
Daily visitation in Macau has been steadily on the rise each month since January, said Hubert Wang, president and chief operating officer at MGM China. Inbound daily visitor count averaged about 50% in the first quarter, and April is now at 75% of 2019 levels.
“If you walk around the street, you can already see the pre-COVID, hustle-and-bustle atmosphere has reemerged in Macau’s integrated resorts and streets,” he said.
Las Vegas Strip
MGM Resorts’ properties on the Las Vegas Strip had a record-breaking first quarter, Hornbuckle said. It’s the seventh straight quarter of record EBITDAR. The performance is the result of a strong calendar filled with sports events, including hosting the Sweet Sixteen and March Madness, as well as other entertainment and convention events at MGM Resorts’ properties and throughout the city.
“The quality and consistency of entertainment and sports programming at MGM Resorts and throughout Las Vegas has been a catalyst for the permanent transformation and strength and demand of our offerings,” he said.
The company has several capital improvement plans underway at its hotels, Hornbuckle said. The Bellagio is nearly finished with its three-year remodeling of the rooms and suites in its Spa Tower. It started the construction of a pedestrian bridge that will connect The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas with The Bellagio and Vdara Hotel & Spa. MGM Resorts is also working on a full upgrade of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center as well as several restaurants, bars, entertainment outlets and room remodels at New York-New York Hotel & Casino, MGM Grand and the Water Club at Borgata.
In Las Vegas, EBITDAR margins of 38% remained in line with performance over the past several quarters, Halkyard said. On a year-over-year basis, revenue grew by $513 million, and adjusted property EBITDAR grew $242 million, representing a flow through of 47%.
Occupancy during the quarter reached 92%, and average daily rate was $258, an increase of 31% over the first quarter of 2022.
“Looking forward, our pace, which reflects on the books rooms, is up year-over-year for every month from now until November,” he said.
As of press time, MGM Resorts’ stock was trading at $46.04 per share, up 37.3% year to date. The NYSE Composite Index was up 2.3% for the same period.