Atlantic City Q2 profits rise to $180 million, but most operators see decline

Atlantic City’s casinos posted higher profits in the second quarter, but the gains were concentrated among a few operators as most properties saw earnings fall.

Gross operating profit for the city’s nine casinos rose nearly 6% from a year earlier to about $180 million, according to figures released by state regulators. Six of the casinos reported lower profits than in the same quarter last year.

Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa led the market with an operating profit of $63 million, up 16%. Ocean Casino Resort also saw profits surge nearly 68% to $26.8 million. By contrast, Hard Rock reported a 6.1% decline to $33 million, Tropicana fell more than 35% to $14.8 million, Caesars dropped nearly 14% to $12.6 million, and Harrah’s slid 24.5% to $11.8 million.

Resorts Casino Hotel recorded $9.8 million in profit, sharply higher than $1.6 million a year ago, reflecting the addition of its former digital operations to the ledger. Golden Nugget slipped more than 20% to $5.1 million, and Bally’s dropped 14.7% to $2.3 million.

For the first half of 2025, the nine casinos generated $313.3 million in operating profit, up 1% year-on-year.

Jane Bokunewicz, director of the Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism, said Atlantic City’s in-person casino industry operates “in a mature market with a slowing growth rate.” She added that “a common strategy is to increase spending on marketing to entice visitation,” but warned that rising costs and competition from online gambling and sports betting mean operators “may be keeping less of the gross gaming revenue than ever.”

James Plousis, chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, said: “All operators were profitable, despite continuing pressure from higher costs for the goods and services they purchase.” He said spring quarter results, along with July’s strong revenue, show Atlantic City “has been competing well for regional gaming and leisure tourists.”

Hotel performance also varied. Ocean charged the highest average nightly rate at $266.97, while Golden Nugget offered the lowest at $115.84. Hard Rock had the highest occupancy at 86.6%, compared with 53% at Golden Nugget. Overall occupancy stood at 72.6%, down less than 1% from a year earlier.