Then again

Implications: The Nevada Gaming Industry is more than just the strip!

Analysis: Let's look at the entire picture when analyzing the Nevada Gaming picture. The strip numbers are currently holding up with some help from a favorable hold in Baccarat and Mini-Bacc, however some markets in Nevada are feeling the recession heat. Primm is sucking wind as Native American casinos in southern california and the southernmost las vegas area casinos take bites out of their markets and that is during the pre recession period. The locals numbers have been at best mixed during the past 4 months reflecting a continued pressure from the foreclosure crisis. The red rock/palms portion of the market is reflecting low single digit increases year over year and has shown a slowing of business. The smaller markets such as Downtown, laughlin and Reno are also retracting in the face of higher gas prices, more native American casinos in California and the foreclosure issue in California. I agree with Ron that the mega companies such as MGM, HET, Wynn and LVS should be fine but as he said more from most of these companies having a presence in Macau and not from their Las Vegas properties. The next few months revenue numbers from Nevada will really tell the story whether 2008 will be another year which holds up well under economic pressures. One side note, after visiting several Station casinos I think the body count is definitely down year to year, We shall see