Macau operators EBITDA rises in the first quarter

Property-based EBITDA for Macau casino operators is estimated to have risen 26 per cent collectively during the first quarter.

Macau.- Banking group Morgan Stanley released a note on Sunday stating that Macau casino operators are estimated to have recorded property-based earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 26 percent year-on-year in the first quarter.

“We estimate property EBITDA has grown by 26 per cent year-on-year to US$2.4 billion, due to positive operating leverage, despite higher VIP growth (24 per cent year-on-year) versus mass (17 per cent year-on-year),” stated analysts Praveen Choudhary, Jeremy An and Thomas Allen.

Wynn Resorts is expected to post the fastest growth of all the operators as it would report 16 per cent quarter-on-quarter. MGM China Holdings is expected to sit on the other end with a -4 per cent quarter-on-quarter results.

According to the analysts, MGM China Holdings performance can be seen “partly reflected in stock performance.” In addition, they noted that the figures for Wynn and MGM are already largely priced in by the stock market, while SJM Holdings and Sands China may do better than Galaxy Entertainment in the near term.