Las Vegas Sands Will Find Many Buyers For Strip Properties
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Las Vegas Sands Corp, one of the biggest casino developers in the world is planning to sell off some of its Las Vegas properties and simplify their operations. Gaming analysts believe that despite the current COVID-19 situation, Sands Corp will have no problem attracting a number of interested parties. One reason for this is due to the Sands Corp brand and the fact that all of these properties are located on the Vegas strip.
Number Of Interested Buyers
The properties up for sale are the Venetian, Palazzo, and Sands Expo and Convention Center. These are some of the most iconic casino properties in Las Vegas and the fact that they are up for sale is creating a lot of attention. Gaming analyst Chad Beynon who works for Macquarie Group Limited said the list of potential buyers includes Churchill Downs Inc. and Galaxy Entertainment Group from Macau.
Beynon pointed out that whoever buys these properties will not only expand into the casino market but also the convention business. The acquisition of the Venetian and Palazzo is a great foundation for any business that wants to go into event hosting. These two properties have great locations with an ideal set of facilities. Acquiring them would immediately put the buyer on the map in the convention hosting business.
Apart from the two mentioned parties, another buyer who is very interested is billionaire Tilman Fertitta. As the chairman and CEO of Landry’s Inc., he is already the owner of the Golden Nugget in downtown Las Vegas. Adding properties from the Strip to his existing holdings would make a lot of sense for his business model.
Australian casino operator Crown Resorts has also expressed interest. The Australian operator has wanted to break into the Las Vegas market for quite some time now. Crown formerly had plans to build a casino of its own in Las Vegas but that fell through. This purchase could allow the company to realize that goal.
COVID Impact
The sale of these properties comes at an interesting time. The Las Vegas casino market has been battered by COVID and it is still trying to recover. The entire strip was forced to shut down for eighty days and only opened back up again in June.
Even so, a lot of the offerings that the city has to offer are still closed. The convention circuit which usually brings in a lot of money is still closed. Sands Corp has recorded just $1.8 billion in revenue for 2020 which is a massive decline when compared to the $13.7 billion it earned in 2019.