Key points:
- Revenue for the operator totalled $1.18bn, up 16% year-on-year
- Operating income totalled $138.6m, up 46.4% year-on-year
- City of Dreams' revenue was up 11.4% to $563.9m – 48% of the operator's total revenue
Melco has reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2024. In total, the operator reported revenue of $1.18 bn, up 16% year-on-year, while operating income totalled $138.6m – an even more sizeable year-on-year increase of 46.4%. Adjusted property EBITDA also performed favourably, up 14.9% to $322.5m, though this is slightly behind other metrics reported by the operator.
Adjusted net income attributable to Melco Resorts & Entertainment came to $36.4m for the quarter, improving significantly from the $11.1m loss reported this time last year.
Revenue by vertical
Of the $1.18bn total revenue, $944.4m, or 80.4%, was generated from casino revenue – up from the $812.1m reported this time last year. Rooms and food and beverage also saw growth year-on-year, making $111m (up 15.5%) and $73.5m (up 21.7%) respectively, though entertainment, retail and other revenue saw a slight dip, from $48.6m in Q3 2023 to $46.3m in Q3 2024.
However, entertainment, retail and other was also the only vertical of the four that did not see an increase in costs and expenses year-on-year, declining by close to $3m to $22.9m. Casino costs and expenses were up by over $90m, coming to $624.1m, while rooms and food and beverage expenses increased by $8.2m and $11.5m respectively, totalling $33.5m and $59.8m.
By property: Altira Macau
For Altira Macau, total operating revenue came to $30.5m, up by over $6m compared to last year, while adjusted EBITDA came to -$1.1m; an improvement on last year’s -$3.8m. Mass market table drop for the property was down by $4.5m to $135.5m, offset by a sizeable increase in gaming machine handle, which was up 71.1% to $148m. Non-gaming revenue remained mostly stagnant, up just $0.1m to $5.4m for the quarter.
Occupancy remained stagnant at 95%, though average daily room rate dipped slightly from $138 to $134. The average number of table games fell from 43 to 37, though gaming machines increased from 125 to 132. Per unit per day, table games made $8,658 (up 29.5%) and gaming machines made $223, down 23.4%, potentially due to the increased number of machines spreading out average machine earnings.
Despite this, Altira Macau was Melco’s only property to report an operating loss during the quarter, making -$2.2m. However, this is a sizeable decrease in loss compared to last year, when operating loss totalled -$9.8m.
By property: Mocha and other
Operating income for Mocha and other totalled $5.9m in Q3 2024, a slight dip of $62,000 year-on-year. Adjusted EBITDA remained stagnant at $6.9m, while operating revenue increased marginally, from $30.1m to $30.6m year-on-year.
Both the average number of table games and gaming machines were down at the property, down by three and 19 respectively. While this increased table game win per unit per day at the property to $6,888, up 29.8%, gaming machine win declined year-on-year, down 2.1% to $276.
By property: Studio City
Studio City reported total operating revenue of $364.7m for Q3 2024, up 31.1% year-on-year. This accounts for 31% of Melco’s total revenue. Operating income more than tripled year-on-year, from $10.1m in Q3 2023 to $36.1m in Q3 2024, with adjusted EBITDA showing a similar rate of growth, from $67.7m to $92.8m.
Mass market table game drop and gaming machine handle both were up by over $100m, with mass market table game drop up 12.8% and gaming machine handle up 26.6% to $912.9m and $853m respectively.
Average daily room rate increased by $4 to $171, with occupancy up from 92% to 96% year-on-year. Revenue per available room followed this upward trend, increasing from $155 to $164.
While the average number of table games at the property grew by just seven to 253, average table game win per unit per day jumped 27.3% to $13,212. Meanwhile, the average number of gaming machines increased by over 60 to 726, with average gaming machine win per unit per day up 18.8% to $418.
Check out our report for a more in-depth analysis of the property’s quarterly results.
By property: City of Dreams
Total operating revenue from City of Dreams came to $563.9m in Q3 2024, accounting for 48% of Melco’s total revenue. This reflects growth of 11.4% year-on-year, with adjusted EBITDA following behind at a growth rate of 5.8%, making $162.8m. Operating income totalled $108.3m, up over $10m from last year’s $95.2m.
Average daily room rate was $211, up 9.3%, with occupancy remaining stagnant at 91%.
The average number of table games remained stagnant at the property at 430. Despite this, average win per unit per day was up by 9.7%, totalling $14,738. The number of gaming machines dropped to 600 from 629 this time last year. However, this resulted in average gaming machine win per unity per day increasing by $40, totalling $545.
By property: City of Dreams Manila
Total operating revenue from this property came to $118.9m, a decline of 4.8% year-on-year. Adjusted EBITDA followed suit, down 5.7% to $45.9m, with operating income also taking a dip year-on-year, down 13.2% to $22.3m. Non-gaming revenue remained stagnant, however, remaining at $29m.
The average number of table games was down by two to 264, while the average number of gaming machines was down by 19 to 1,276. Despite declines across the board (table game win per unit per day at City of Dreams Manila was down 7.7% to $3,308), gaming machine win per unit per day managed to report growth year-on-year, up 14.3% to $272.
By property: City of Dreams Mediterranean and other
Meanwhile, City of Dreams Mediterranean and other reported revenue of $64.4m, up by $11m year-on-year. The segment also reported a positive adjusted EBITDA, more than doubling from last year’s $7.2m to this year’s $15.1m. Rolling chip volume was up by over $10m year-on-year to $14.6m in the quarter, with a win rate of 0.9% compared to last year’s negative 7.1%. All other metrics, including mass market table drop, gaming machine handle and non-gaming revenue were also up, with operating income totalling $2.1m, compared to a loss last year of $7.8m.
Average daily room rate grew by more than any other Melco operator, from $375 to $526; an increase of $151, up 40.3%.
Comments
On the results, Chairman and CEO Lawrence Ho said: “Our initiatives to activate areas throughout our properties and drive visitation are coming together. We launched a revamped loyalty program, opened a new Signature Club premium slot area at City of Dreams and a highly themed slot area called the Dragon Zone at Studio City, in partnership with Aristocrat Gaming. We are enhancing accessibility into City of Dreams with a new light tunnel entrance which is complemented by live performances. We expect to continue to unveil new and exciting projects to support the ongoing growth in Macau.
“In Manila, despite added competition, City of Dreams’ property EBITDA increased sequentially. City of Dreams Mediterranean and our satellite casinos in Cyprus continue to face challenges due to the conflicts in the region but have had solid increases in property EBITDA quarter-to-quarter.”
