Isle of Capri turns around last year’s quarterly loss

“Excluding Nemacolin (in Farmington, Pennsylvania), which was open for only one month during last year’s quarter, six properties improved net revenues year over year and eight properties increased Adjusted EBITDA year over year,” Virginia McDowell, president and CEO, said in a statement. “We continued to benefit from our profit improvement initiatives during the quarter.”

In July the company eliminated certain executive positions, including executive chairman. That move, McDowell said, is expected to save US$ 2.5 million annually, not counting severance expense of US$ 2.3 million in the current quarter.

“We are also continuing to refine our marketing programs to enhance our customers’ experience,” McDowell said. “On a same-store basis, during the quarter we saw a slight increase in play from our top tier customers and a 4 percent increase in retail play. This was offset by a decrease in play from customers in the lower segments of our database.”

In Missouri, the company’s net revenues increased US$ 600,000, to US$ 58.9 million. Boonville, Cape Girardeau and Caruthersville were helped by an increase in top-tier rated play, the company said.

The St. Louis-based company, which is reportedly exploring a sale, owns and operates 15 gaming and entertainment facilities in Mississippi, Louisiana, Iowa, Missouri, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Florida.