MJC Investments gaming revenue drops 68.6% in Q1

MJC Investments Corp has reported a fall in gaming revenue of 68.6 per cent year-on-year for the first three months of the year, from PHP116.9m to PHP36.7m.

The Philippines.- MJC Investments Corp, the promoter of Manila’s Winford Hotel and Casino, has reported a net loss of PHP157.4m (US$3.1m) for the first quarter of the year, down 66.4 per cent when compared to PHP94.6m in the prior-year quarter.

The casino operator reported gaming operations revenue of PHP36.7m, down 68.6 per cent year-on-year, mainly due to a decrease in gaming tables and electronic gaming machine numbers to comply with Covid-19 countermeasures required by the government. Average monthly foot traffic decreased from 120,000 in 2019 to only 30,000 in 2020.

Hotel revenue declined by 57 per cent to PHP6.5m due to the temporary closure of the venue as part of the government restrictions.

Operating costs and expenses at the Winford Hotel and Casino fell by 26.3 per cent from PHP223.1m to PHP164.4m due to “lower depreciation, salaries and wages, gaming fees, contracted services, cost of hotel room and supplies, advertising and marketing, professional fees, banquet, entertainment, cost of food, beverage and tobacco and other operational expenses.”

Last October, the firm reported a loss of Php185.2m (US$3.8m) for the second quarter of the year. 

Manila’s enhanced community quarantine (ECU) is supposed to end on August 20. It remains unknown if the measures will be extended as the government is analysing the economic impact of the lockdowns.