Isle of Capri Casinos is reportedly seeking potential buyers for its co-owned Lady Luck Casino at Nemacolin Woodlands, one of two resort-class casinos in Pennsylvania.
The casino, opened in July 2013 at the five-star Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in western Pennsylvania’s Fayette County, is co-owned with the Hardy family, Nemacolin’s owners and owner of Pennsylvania’s 84 Lumber. Isle of Capri built the casino in an existing building at the resort, and operates it under a 30-year lease with Nemacolin. The lease consists of an initial 10-year term with four renewals of five years.
Isle of Capri distributed a note to investors last week, advising that the company is exploring a sale of the rights to the “operating assets, customer list and rights to manage and operate the Lady Luck Casino.”
Lady Luck had flat results initially, laying off 70 of its initial 450 employees within two months after its 2013 opening. As a Category 3 resort casino, access is restricted to hotel guests, or customers who spend at least $10 on a resort gift card or buy an annual $45 pass. It is the state’s smallest casino.
Results, however, have improved since the initial flat period. Month-on-month revenues have increased every month since July 2014, and Isle reported $40.2 million in gross gaming revenue for the last fiscal year. In last week’s third-quarter earnings call, Isle reported quarterly revenues of $241.1 million, which beats Wall Street estimates.
Meanwhile, officials have denied rumors that Isle of Capri in Natchez, Mississippi is being sold to competitor Magnolia Bluffs. Isle Natchez General Manager Dick Stewart told the Natchez Democrat that he had confirmed that the rumors were untrue after hearing them himself.
“At this time, that rumor is not true because (the company has) to announce it as soon as there is any kind of agreement at all,” Stewart said. “Isle of Capri is a publicly traded company, and the second they sign an intent to sell, it has to be posted to all stockholders, of which I am one, and there has been no word at all.”
