Supplier News
US – Churchill Downs buys 25 per cent of Saratoga Casino Holdings
By Phil - 7 November 2014Churchill Downs is buying a 25 per cent stake in Saratoga Casino Holdings for US$30.6m, providing Churchill with a share in five more casinos.
The deal will give Churchill part ownership in Saratoga Casino and Raceway, Saratoga Casino Black Hawk in Black Hawk, Colorado and the Gideon Putnam Hotel and Resort in Saratoga Springs. It will also now have an interest in the proposed Capital View Casino & Resort in East Greenbush as well as Saratoga Harness Racing’s partnership with Rush Street Gaming for the proposed Hudson Valley Casino & Resort in Newburgh. Churchill Downs saw its earnings slump by 62 per cent during the third quarter ending September 30 when GGr fell from US$ 9.2m to $3.5m.
Bill Carstanjen, Churchill Downs CEO, said: “We were pleased with our third-quarter results which were in line with our internal expectations. We produced record (adjusted earnings) of $32.2m, despite generally soft regional gaming trends and changes to the legal and tax environment affecting our online operations. We continued to make strategic investments in the development of our real-money internet gaming platform and incurred costs associated with our Capital View Casino joint venture bid for a New York gaming license.”