Friday, March 27, 2009 | 5:55 p.m.
The Palazzo on the Las Vegas Strip.
Beyond the Sun
Layoffs forced 283 people out of work today at Las Vegas Sands Corp. in Las Vegas.
Ron Reese, spokesman for the company, said the affected employees worked in the corporate offices as well as the Venetian and Palazzo resorts on the Strip. He said nearly 7,000 full-time equivalent positions remain in Las Vegas.
The layoffs are part of a broad cost-reduction effort at the company, Reese said. Like many of its competitors, Las Vegas Sands faces huge interest costs because of its massive debt load -- $10.4 billion -- at a time when business at its resorts has been hurt by the recession.
Still, Las Vegas Sands is working toward the May 22 opening of its $778 million Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem in Pennsylvania. That project, 70 miles from New York City, will have 3,000 slot machines. Also under construction is a $5.4 billion resort in Singapore due to open at the end of the year.
The company's stock rose this week as investors learned of another potential cost-cutting strategy. Sands executives said they are considering refinancing some of the debt by buying back about $800 million in bank loans.
Sands stock closed Friday at $3.14, up 2 cents. In the fourth quarter, the company lost $111.3 million, though revenue rose 4.3 percent to $1.9 billion.
Sun Archives
- Third executive leaving Las Vegas Sands (3-24-2009)
- Sands not so adored in Macau these days (3-23-2009)
- Sands president begins early, earning base of $2 million (3-17-2009)
- Las Vegas Sands replaces president (3-9-2009)
- Las Vegas Sands faces third shareholder lawsuit (2-18-2009)
- Las Vegas Sands swings to loss in fourth quarter (2-11-2009)
- Las Vegas Sands directors hit with shareholder lawsuit (1-28-2009)
- Las Vegas Sands: A big rise, a big fall (1-18-2009)
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