Atlantic City casino earnings fell 35 percent in 2013

The good news is that for the fourth quarter of 2013, the casinos at least reduced their gross operating losses by more than 73 percent, to a loss of us$5.7 million. That compares with a loss of us$21.6 million for the same period of 2012, when New Jersey was still reeling from the effects of Superstorm Sandy.

Gross operating profit includes earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and other charges, and is a widely accepted measure of profitability in the casino industry.

The earnings report issued Monday by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement is the first to cover the period when New Jersey offered Internet gambling, which began in late November. But only five casinos offered Internet gambling under their own licenses. Two more — Bally’s Atlantic City and Caesars Atlantic City — did so through the license of their affiliate Caesars Interactive Entertainment NJ, which is broken out of the report into its own category. And five other casinos did not offer Internet gambling, making direct comparisons difficult.

TheTropicana Casino and Resort saw the largest jump in earnings for the year, increasing by more than 47 percent to $26.5 million. The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa saw its profit increase by less than 2 percent, to us$121.6 million for the year.

The Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort posted a gross operating profit of $19.6 million for the year, but that was down more than 55 percent from 2012. Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, one of the city’s most struggling casinos, swung from an operating profit of nearly us$ 10 million in 2012 to an operating loss of us$ 4.7 million in 2013.

The Golden Nugget Atlantic City cut its operating loss from us$ 11.4 million in 2012 to us$ 10.4 million last year.

Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City saw its operating profit for the year fall by 19.5 percent to $102.1 million; the Showboat Casino Hotel saw its profit fall by nearly 28 percent to $34 million, and Resorts Casino Hotel saw its operating losses widen by more than 54 percent, to $12.2 million, despite the opening of its Margaritaville complex last year.

Bally’s profits declined by more than 45 percent, to $33.4 million, and Caesars saw its profits fall by 16 percent to $69.5 million. Their online affiliate, Caesars Interactive Entertainment NJ, posted a gross operating loss of nearly $1.3 million. It began online gambling operations on Nov. 21.

Revel Casino Hotel, which is seeking a buyer, saw its operating loss widen by 17.4 percent for the year, to $130.2 million.

The Atlantic Club had cut its operating loss by nearly 34 percent, to $12.7 million. But the improvement was too little, too late: ; the casino was bought at a bankruptcy court auction by Tropicana Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment, who divided its assets and shut it down on Jan. 13.

Casino regulators took heart in increases in food and beverage sales and room rentals in the fourth quarter of the year — even if they were due mostly to the comparison with the end of 2012 when the casinos closed for five to seven days because of Sandy, and then saw their business languish for months as customers cleaned up and tried to rebuild their storm-damaged homes.

Matt Levinson, chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, said receipts from the luxury tax, hotel tax, tourism tax and sales tax hit record highs last year.

“These numbers show that Atlantic City’s casinos are continuing to broaden their appeal and the casino industry’s focus on developing nongaming amenities is clearly bearing fruit,” he said.