Las Vegas Sands, along with Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL), Wynn Resorts Inc. (NASDAQ: WYNN) and MGM Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MGM), are among the U.S. listed companies with large casino/resorts on the island and its Cotai Strip, the Macau version of the Las Vegas Strip.
The loss of the land rights to Parcels 7 and 8 cost the company about $10.5 million, but today’s ruling saved Sands about $96.5 million that it already has invested in the resort and casino expansion. However, the government will impose an unspecified fine for the construction delay.
Expansion projects aside, though, the higher hurdle for all the operators remains the Chinese government’s visa restrictions and the imposition of credit card spending limits on visitors to Macau.
Shares of Las Vegas Sands are up about 0.5% in pre-market activity this morning, at $39.76 in a 52-week range of $36.08 to $62.09.
Paul Ausick