MGM Mirage 3Q profit rises 18 percent

The world's second-largest casino company, MGM Mirage, notched higher sales from its restaurants and other businesses outside gaming, and drew income from hurricane insurance recoveries. As a result the company's profit rose 18 percent.

Photo: MGM Mirage 3Q profit rises 18 percent

Earnings rose to $183.9 million (€127.65 million), or 62 cents per share, compared with $156.3 million (€108.49 million), or 54 cents per share, in the prior-year period.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected net income of 50 cents per share.

The company received an additional $92 million (€63.86 million) of insurance recoveries related to Hurricane Katrina during the quarter.

Quarterly revenue rose 6 percent to $1.90 billion (€1.32 billion) compared with the year earlier. Consensus estimates put sales at $1.91 billion (€1.33 billion).

MGM said it notched increased revenue from its restaurants, nightclubs and shows, while room rates remained strong.

Casino revenue rose 3 percent to $803.8 million (€557.92 million), but was down 3 percent when excluding results from Beau Rivage, which the company opened in August last year in Mississippi.

Hotel revenue rose 7 percent to $510.8 million (€354.55 million) despite remodeling that took rooms out of service at the Bellagio and Mandalay Bay sites in Las Vegas. Revenue per available room rose for the 17th straight quarter in Las Vegas, to $143 (€99.26) from $135 (€93.70) in the quarter.

Food and beverage revenue rose 10 percent to $406.6 million (€282.22 million) while entertainment revenue, driven by the company's Cirque du Soleil productions, rose 13 percent to $141.1 million (€97.94 million).

MGM raised the budget for its Macau project to $1.25 billion (€0.87 billion) from $1.1 billion (€0.76 billion) and boosted its CityCenter budget to $7.8 billion (€5.41 billion) from $7.4 billion (€5.14 billion).

The company opened the $800 million (€555.29 million) MGM Grand Detroit on Oct. 2 and entered into a 50-50 partnership on its CityCenter project with a subsidiary of Dubai World, to whom it sold $1.2 billion (€0.83 billion) in shares.

The company also recently announced plans for an up-to-$5 billion (€3.47 billion) MGM Grand Atlantic City to open in 2012, and signed an agreement with a Dubai World unit and Kerzner International Holdings Ltd. to develop another multibillion-dollar casino complex on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip also to open in 2012.

Shares of MGM Mirage fell about 87 cents, or nearly 1 percent, to $92.05 in morning trading.