Macau February gaming revenue set to drop by 50pc
Initial February data shows much weaker performance than anticipated
Macau's gross gaming revenue this month is set to drop 50 per cent from a year ago, analysts say, as initial data from the first few days of the Lunar New Year, a peak season for mainland gamblers, showed a much weaker performance than anticipated.
In the lead-up to the week-long holiday that began on February 19, analysts were expecting a fall of about 40 per cent compared with the same time last year, the most profitable month the city had on record.
However, the slower than usual business has led analysts to revise that to a 50 per cent drop and to cut full-year gaming revenue estimates from negative single digits to a double-digit drop.
"We are disappointed by the weak results since the data includes the results from the first five days of the Lunar New Year, typically the busiest period of the holiday," a Nomura note said.
"February looks set to significantly miss even the most conservative estimates on the street," Citibank's gaming analyst Anil Daswani wrote in a report published on February 24, but also added "the more important data point is next week, which will show if the normal [post-Lunar New Year] ramp occurs".
The news sent the share prices of the six licensed Macau casino operators tumbling yesterday with MGM China Holdings leading the slide. The stock fell 7.24 per cent.
Melco Crown Entertainment and Wynn Macau both dropped 5.92 per cent, while Galaxy Entertainment Group declined 5.13 per cent, SJM Holdings shed 5.12 per cent and Sands China slid 5.8 per cent.
