Macau stabilizes after China unit profit falls 19%, Adelson says

Sands China Ltd. posted adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization fell 19 percent to $581.2 million in the fourth quarter, its parent said in a statement. The figure beat the market estimate of $555 million, according to Karen Tang, an analyst at Deutsche Bank AG.

“I thought we had either hit bottom in the mass market or were bottoming out,” Adelson said on a post-earnings conference call. “Some of the numbers put out and experienced through December and January” among other materials he has read, “indicate to me that that’s the case.”

Macau is facing headwinds as China’s crackdown on corruption and a slowing economy have scared away high-end gamblers from the world’s largest gambling market. While the city’s casino takings dropped 21.2 percent in December — falling for the 19th straight month — that represented the smallest year-on-year decline since last January.

Sands China has seen its share price slump 30 percent in 2015. Still, the stock gained 14 percent in the fourth quarter as the decline in mass-market revenue has narrowed. It rose as much as 4.9 percent to HK$25.75 in Hong Kong trading, reaching the highest intraday level since Jan. 6.

Sands China’s earnings have “handsomely” beat consensus, said Karen Tang, an analyst at Deutsche Bank AG. “We expect Macau stocks to see a six to eight week short-term bounce into the seasonally strong Chinese New Year, and our top pick is Sands China.”

Las Vegas Sands, the world’s largest casino operator, earlier posted fourth-quarter sales and profit that missed analysts’ estimates as gambling revenue in the key markets of Macau and Singapore declined.

The higher dividend could signal management’s confidence in the outlook for Macau. Investors are looking for signs of a recovery after Adelson in December predicted a turnaround “in the near future, certainly in 2016.”

Sands, which has the most casinos among other foreign operators, plans to open later this year the $2.7 billion Parisian Macao, its fifth project featuring a half-size replica of the Eiffel Tower. Macau government has urged gaming houses to build more non-gaming entertainment facilities to attract tourists.