Pinnacle Looking To Expand Presence With New Casino Acquisitions

Las Vegas-based casino operator Pinnacle Entertainment Inc has said that it is open to acquisitions that fit into its portfolio. Pinnacle currently operates gaming properties in 10 states nationwide including Nevada.

Company officials said that they had been encouraged by the performance of their newest acquisition, The Meadows Casino in Pennsylvania, adding that the company was looking for properties that could help transform the company.

Carlos Ruisanchez, the company’s president and chief financial officer recently held a conference call with analysts to discuss the company’s financial results for the second quarter. During the call, the COO confirmed that a disciplined approach toward acquisitions would be adopted going forward. Ruisanchez listed the criteria that would be used to evaluate potential acquisition opportunities.

In a statement Ruisanchez said

There have to be three key elements. It’s got to be a business that has a competitive advantage in its market, it needs to be a positive fit within our portfolio and it has to be meaningful (with at least a 10 percent increase in operations.)

For the quarter ending June 30, Pinnacle has posted earnings of $106.5 million while its overall revenue was $653.6 million, an increase of around 15 percent. While the earnings were below analysts’ expectations, the revenue still beat their forecast of $645 million.

Company executives on the conference call highlighted the performance of The Meadows as promising. The company reported revenue of $72.3 million, the strongest performance since Pinnacle’s purchase of the property. Senior executives said that they expect the revenue to grow further with the introduction of the company’s choice loyalty card program in 2017.

On a same store basis, the company’s revenue increased by 2.7 percent. Asian gaming volume at its properties was up 9 percent. Several Pinnacle properties including the Ameristar East Chicago, the Ameristar St. Charles in Missouri, the Ameristar Kansas City and the Boomtown New Orleans posted growth of over 20 percent in Asian gaming volume.

Pinnacle officials also stated that the property in Louisiana, L’Auberge Baton Rouge was likely to face a fresh challenge with the local city council passing a law banning indoor smoking across the city. Pinnacle is countering the issue by developing an outdoor smoking terrace for its patrons. Company officials also stated noted they were already running smoke free operations in places like the Belterra Park property in Cincinnati, Ohio.