DGE delivers second quarter results for New Jersey

The Division of Gaming Enforcement in New Jersey has published results for the second quarter of the year, with casinos reaching a net revenue of $828.8m over the period ended on June 30. This translated into a 14.1% increase. Gross operating profit stood at $183.6m, the DGE confirmed in an executive summary of the results. Net revenue for the first six months of the year hit $1.5bn. This result was equal to a 19.9% increase year-over-year.

The DGE also reported a gross operating profit of $339.3m for the first six months of the year, up 20.9% from the same period a year ago. The biggest winners in 2022 were Hard Rock with $160.5m and Ocean Resort with $94.8m in net revenue results. Both properties had improved significantly over their 2021 results. The Borgata was once again ahead of all properties, reaching $186.76m during the quarter, up from the $143.7m posted last year.

Tropicana amassed $80.5m in net revenue with Harrah’s following it with $79m. Caesars ended up with $62m and Resorts Casino and Golden Nugget had $42m and $41.5m respectively in net revenue. Bally’s AC posted $42.5m.

The first six months of the year, or H1 as it’s known in financial argot, resulted in total net revenue for the industry of $1.54bn. This amounted to a gross operating profit of $339.2m during the first half of the year. Meanwhile, the occupancy rate for hotels in Q2 also improved significantly.

The overall occupancy stood at 77.4% or 7.4% higher than the second quarter of 2021, signaling a return of tourism and strong overall results. Even though New Jersey is experiencing a strong uptake in occupancy and gaming interest, the Garden State still needs to account for the lingering weariness from the pandemic.

COVID-19 is still suppressing pre-pandemic results for several properties, including the Bally's, Borgata, Golden Nugget, Harrah’s, and the Tropicana which all did well in July, but are still below the targets set in July 2019. What this means is that while there are reasons to cheer, New Jersey needs to tread carefully.

Pre-pandemic recovery is an important metric and one that is often used to curb recent plans to ban smoking on casino floors. There has been mounting opposition from casino workers who have rallied and called for an end to indoor smoking in Atlantic City casinos.

Many have argued that they are forced to trade their health in for a paycheck. The Casino Association of New Jersey has urged workers to be patient and defer such demands a little while longer as the Garden State is still trying to find its footing after the COVID-19 pandemic had properties on shutdown and results are still shaky.

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