Casino shares continue to tumble on coronavirus fears
Shares of six licensed casino operators in Macau were reported to have hit record lows yesterday amid a recent drop in global stock prices due to ongoing concerns about the global coronavirus pandemic.
The value of individual shares of Galaxy Entertainment Group Limited has fallen 38% over the past 10 weeks, slightly over $4.97 as of yesterday. The Hong Kong-listed company is responsible for the huge Galaxy Macao, Starworld Macao and Broadway Macao venues, with the current valuation reportedly down 19.8% from last week’s close of $6.20.
Las Vegas Sands Corp reportedly closed Thursday trading, with the stock valued at just $3.37. This valuation of the operator behind Venetian Macao, Plaza Macao, Sands Macao, Paris Macao and Sands Cotai Central properties represents a 19.4% plunge from $4.18 last week, and is reportedly down about 39% compared to $5.51 on January 2.
Las Vegas-based MGM Resorts International reportedly closed each stock at just $0.98 yesterday, down 13.2% from $1.13 on March 10. Inside Asian Gaming detailed that this is the lowest value since the end of February 2016 for the Macao face-to-face operator of MGM Macau and MGM Kotai venues, down 62% from the record high of $3.13 recorded in January 2018.
Shares of Macau’s iconic casino Grand Lisboa SJM Holdings Limited also reportedly fell 23.6% week-on-week to $0.78, while local rival Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited fell 10.7% to $1.65 yesterday.
Wynn Resorts Limited Wynn Macau Limited closed Thursday at a three-year low of $1.33 and is reportedly down 24.5% compared to $1.76 recorded on March 12. The company is responsible for 1,000-room Win Macau and the grander Win Palace co-tie, and is reportedly struggling with competitors while gamblers are away due to recent coronavirus-related travel restrictions, along with a temporary 15-day shutdown last month.
Casino companies are also struggling, as CDC Gaming Report reported in a Wednesday article that MGM Resorts International’s stock fell 25% to $7.14 on Wednesday.