Gaming revenue from Nevada casinos dropped nearly 3 percent in October, the state reported today.
The Gaming Control Board said casinos won $887.6 million last month, down about 2.9 percent from the same month a year ago.
Statewide, baccarat revenue dropped 21.8 percent to $79.1 million, while slot revenue fell 1.4 percent to $572.2 million.
Baccarat, a favorite of high rollers, suffered in October from declines in the amount wagered and the amount held by casinos, said Michael Lawton, senior research analyst for the gaming board.
Baccarat woes aside, there was one big highlight to the state totals: Sports books reported a 21.8 percent revenue increase from last year. Lawton said the $504.6 million wagered by sports fans was the second highest monthly total the state had ever seen.
Those decreases were generally reflected on the Strip, which is by far the state’s largest gaming market.
Strip gaming revenue for the month was $493.6 million, down 5.1 percent from October 2014. The Strip’s baccarat revenue declined 19.5 percent to $78.3 million, while slot revenue was flat at $260.5 million.
In downtown Las Vegas, gaming revenue declined 6.5 percent to $44.6 million.
The rest of Clark County was mixed: North Las Vegas and the Boulder Strip reported declines of about 4 percent and 6.6 percent, respectively, while Laughlin was up less than 1 percent, and Mesquite’s gaming revenue increased 2.9 percent.
Overall, Clark County gaming revenue for the month was $756 million, down 4 percent from October 2014.
Washoe County had a better month, comparatively: Its gaming revenue increased 6.4 percent from last year to $68 million. In particular, Reno’s gaming revenue grew 6.9 percent to $50.1 million.
The state collected $52.3 million in taxes on October’s gaming revenue, a decrease of 21.7 percent from last year.