Maryland casinos set new revenue record as total tops $100m for second month

maryland-casino-revenue-recordCasinos in Maryland are continuing the torrid pace they’ve carved out so far this year, setting yet another new monthly record in May.

According to figures released Monday by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming agency, the state’s five casino operators reported combined revenue of $104.4m in May. Total slots revenue was $66.9m, up 5.6% year-on-year, while table games were up 14.3% to $37.4m.

May’s result represents an 8.3% rise over the same month last year and a new monthly record for the state. The state’s casinos have now notched two straight months in which their revenue total has exceeded $100m, following April’s $103.9m. However, May’s year-on-year gain was less than half the 17% rise reported in April.

Despite the slowing pace of growth, Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director Gordon Medenica called the back-to-back plus-$100m totals “a noteworthy achievement” and proclaimed the state’s casino business to be “on a roll.”

As usual, some of Maryland’s casinos were on more of a roll than others. Market-leader Maryland Live claimed $59m of the overall pie, up 1.8% year-on-year.

Runner-up Horseshoe Casino Baltimore reported much stronger growth, rising 31.3% to $28.8m, although this was down from April’s $30.2m. The year-on-year gain is a bit illusory, as May 2015 represented the property’s lowest monthly haul since opening in August 2014, a shortfall the casino blamed on civil unrest following the Baltimore Police shooting of a black city resident.

Hollywood Casino Perryville was the month’s lone decliner, falling 3% to $6.9m, while Ocean Downs rose 3.2% to $5.2m and Rocky Gap improved 4% to $4.4m.

Meanwhile, across the border in Pennsylvania, the state Gaming Control Board reported its casino slots revenue fell 1.1% to $208.8m. The market-leading Parx Casino was in positive territory, up 2.7% to $34.5m, as was Sands Bethlehem, which rose nearly 5% to $27.9m, while Rivers Casino was down nearly 8% to $22.4m.