The Las Vegas Strip led Nevada’s gaming revenues to their third straight monthly increase in August.
The 4.3 percent bump over last year worked out to $952.4 million, according to figures released by the state Gaming Control Board. The Strip won $520.6 million, an increase of 8.95 percent. Reno fared well also, winning $64.6 million, up 4.66 percent.
“The Strip was the driver for this month’s statewide increase,” the Control Board’s Michael Lawton told industry newsletter CDC Gaming Reports. “This was the result of strong non-baccarat game and table play which benefited from increased volumes and significant increases to hold percentages.”
The results lifted the Strip into positive territory for the first time in 2019, albeit slightly, up 0.1 percent through August versus a year ago. The state as a whole is up 0.7 percent. Washoe County, which includes Reno and North Lake Tahoe, is down 1.2 percent.
Discussing the month in a report to investors, Macquarie Securities gaming analyst Chad Beynon said, “While gross gaming revenue is faced with an easy comparison from the slump last summer, commentary and our checks point to underlying strength on the non-VIP side of the business.”
This was borne out on the Strip, where blackjack, craps and roulette were the big drivers, up 29.2 percent, 67.3 percent and 43.3 percent, respectively, while bets at high-end baccarat, normally the principal money-maker, were down 7.2 percent, although the casinos played lucky and won 6 percent more than they did last August: $97.6 million.
Machine gaming also proved strong. Slot win on the Strip was up 1.6 percent on a 5.2 percent increase in handle.
It was a good month for sports betting too. Wagers statewide were up 16.1 percent to $287.8 million, and the books kept $18.7 million of it, a year-on-year increase of almost 49 percent.
