Good times continue for Vegas casinos

David Strow

Tuesday, April 11, 2000 | 11:03 a.m.

The strongest baccarat performance in more than two years helped Nevada's casinos win $751.6 million in February, an increase of nearly 14 percent over February 1999.

The strong numbers continue the hot pace set in January, when Nevada casinos recorded an all-time record win of $865.4 million. But the growth rate reported today was double the rate set in January.

And table games were the biggest gainers during the month. Overall table win rose 20.5 percent during February, compared to a 10.8 percent win among slots.

That win resulted in tax payments of $40.1 million for the state of Nevada, an increase of 11.5 percent, the Nevada Gaming Control Board reported today.

The Strip's win outpaced Nevada as a whole; in February, Strip casinos won $386.8 million, up 16.5 percent.

Frank Streshley, senior gaming analyst with the Control Board, said the primary factors in driving growth were a particularly strong Chinese New Year's and, to a lesser extent, a strong Presidents Day weekend.

Chinese New Year's was a big factor in pushing Nevada's baccarat win to $85.5 million in February, up 25.7 percent. That's the highest baccarat win since December 1997, Streshley said.

Still, casino hold on baccarat declined -- baccarat players wagered $511.4 million in February, a 31.1 percent increase.

Through the eight months ending Feb. 29, the state's win was $6.29 billion, up 12.1 percent.

That pace should continue for some time, said Lehman Bros. gaming analyst Stuart Linde.

"I expect similar good trends in March ... we've heard it's very strong," Linde said. "Advance booking in April is also very strong. In general, the numbers are very good. I would say Vegas is pretty strong, and the (national economy) picture is pretty strong as well."

Linde attributed the gains to three factors: the strong economy, a strengthening convention business and new Strip properties drawing visitors to Las Vegas.

"For the year, we'll see at least 5 percent visitor growth, if not higher," Linde said.

On the Strip, the biggest gains were posted among blackjack tables, which saw win rise 37.6 percent, and baccarat tables, where win rose 26.6 percent. Strip slots, by comparison, grew win by 9.9 percent.

But gains also came from two markets that have struggled in recent years -- downtown Las Vegas and Laughlin. After three straight months of declining win numbers, downtown casinos posted a 2.3 percent increase in February, to $54.5 million. Laughlin's $51.2 million win -- up 13.6 percent -- was an all-time record for that market, Streshley said.

But the big star among Nevada markets was North Las Vegas. In February, North Las Vegas win was $21.1 million, up 35.3 percent. North Las Vegas win has grown at double-digit percentage rates for the last seven months.

"There's been an expansion of Texas Station and Fiesta since last year, so the number of (gaming positions) has increased," Streshley said.

The Boulder Strip saw win rise 14.7 percent, to $46 million, while Mesquite's win rose 17.7 percent to $8.3 million. Overall, Clark County recorded win of $622.3 million, up 15.2 percent.

The growth pace was echoed by Northern Nevada. Washoe County casinos saw their win rise 11.5 percent in February, to $75.7 million, while Elko County casinos shot ahead nearly 25 percent to $18.9 million.

The only laggard for the month recorded by the Control Board was South Lake Tahoe, where win fell nearly 15 percent to $19.6 million.