Operator News
US – Gaming and Leisure Properties generates its best ever results
By Phil - 27 October 2023
Gaming and Leisure Properties generated record results for the quarter ended September 30 with revenue rising 7.7 per cent year over year to $359.6m.
Peter Carlino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GLPI, commented: ““Our pipeline of growth opportunities remains robust and in the third quarter we expanded our footprint with the acquisition of the land associated with the Hard Rock Casino development project in Rockford, IL for $100m and entered into a 99-year ground lease with 815 Entertainment with initial annual rent of $8m. The strong initial results at 815 Entertainment’s temporary facility demonstrate the attractiveness of the property’s location and the depth of the market. Hard Rock is the property manager of and an equity investor in 815 Entertainment, bringing its world-class management team to the project and we expect that the world-renowned Hard Rock brand would support and solidify the new casino’s position as a tourist destination and entertainment venue. The overall transaction structure reflects our creativity in crafting a comprehensive construction financing solution.
“We further expanded our footprint through the acquisition of the land and certain improvements at Casino Queen Marquette for $32.72m resulting in an annual rent increase on the Casino Queen Master Lease of $2.7m. We continue to believe there are near- and longer-term cases for GLPI to further support tenants with innovative financing, capital and development structures in an accretive, prudent manner. This operating strategy has driven stable, visible growth of our rental cash flows and AFFO for ten years, enabling GLPI to consistently increase capital returns to shareholders.
“After undergoing an $85m transformation, The Queen Baton Rouge, formerly known as Hollywood Casino Baton Rouge, opened to the public on August 24, marking Louisiana’s freshest casino gaming, sports wagering, entertainment, and dining location. The rebranded and completely new property, now situated on dry land near downtown along the Mississippi River, is poised to become a premier dining and entertainment destination, boasting an expanded footprint of over 100,000 square feet. Rent under the Casino Queen Master Lease was adjusted to reflect a yield of 8.25 per cent on GLPI’s project costs of $77 million.
“We remain excited about the agreement we entered into earlier this year with our tenant Bally’s and Major League Baseball’s Oakland Athletics, to develop an integrated casino within a new 30,000-seat Las Vegas stadium for the team at our 35-acre Tropicana site. GLPI intends to commit to up to $175 million of funding for construction costs and may have the opportunity to provide additional construction financing under certain circumstances. In June, the Nevada legislature approved public funding for the A’s Las Vegas stadium paving the way for the stadium project at the site and the ultimate re-development of the Tropicana Las Vegas. The letter of intent provides that the transaction will be subject to customary approvals and other conditions, including the approval of the MLB owners to relocate the team on or before December 1, 2023, and certain approvals by the Nevada Gaming Control Board and Nevada Gaming Commission.
