Cosmopolitan revenue up thanks to casino boost

The Cosmopolitan.

The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas reported its fourth quarter and full-year earnings Friday.

Company: Nevada Property 1 LLC

Revenue: For the year, net revenue was $738.8 million, a 13.2 percent increase from $652.5 million last year. For the quarter, net revenue was $166.9 million, up 10 percent from $151.7 million in 2013's fourth quarter.

Loss: For the year, the Cosmopolitan’s net loss was $662.3 million, compared to a net loss of $94.8 million in 2013. Net loss for the fourth quarter was $620.7 million, compared to a net loss of $25.4 million in 2013's fourth quarter. The Cosmopolitan, which was sold to a division of Blackstone Group for $1.73 billion last year, had an income tax expense of $554.4 million in 2014. The property's operating loss was $69.4 million for the year, compared to a $106.2 million operating loss in 2013.

What it means: The Cosmopolitan saw revenue increases in some key areas during 2014.

Casino revenue increased most notably, rising 30.7 percent from last year to $203.2 million. The Cosmopolitan’s filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said the property is focusing both on increasing its level of table game play and boosting slot activity.

In a February interview, new Cosmopolitan CEO William McBeath admitted that the property had work to do as it seeks to lure in more gamblers.

“Obviously, we don’t have our fair market share on the gaming side on either slots or table games,” McBeath said at the time. “Our performance is pretty anemic relative to our peers.”

McBeath said the Cosmopolitan would be improving its gaming environment and product offerings to make the destination “more appealing to the high-end customer.”

As for other important categories, the Cosmopolitan’s hotel revenue rose 16.2 percent from 2013. According to the filing, the property’s better daily rate and revenue per available room can be attributed largely to “the direct and indirect effects of strong demand” from group and convention customers. The filing noted that it was helped by more “free independent travelers” as well.

Strong business from groups and conventions also helped drive an 8.8 percent increase in the Cosmopolitan’s food and beverage revenue for 2014. At the same time, entertainment, retail and other revenue increased 8.8 percent, too.

The filing also disclosed that in mid-March, the Cosmopolitan and Spiegelworld tentatively agreed upon terms to settle a legal dispute related to the closure of the show “Vegas Nocturne.”

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