GGRAsia – Sands China 3Q adjusted EBITDA up 17pct q-o-q

Sands China 3Q adjusted EBITDA up 17pct q-o-q

Oct 19, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Singapore, Top of the deck

Macau casino operator Sands China Ltd saw a 16.6 percent quarter-on-quarter gain in adjusted property earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) in the three months to September 30.

Such EBITDA was US$631 million, versus US$541 million in the second quarter, according to a Wednesday filing in the United States by the parent Las Vegas Sands Corp.

The sequential improvement in EBITDA was “broadly in line with consensus’ US$617 million and 82 percent of third-quarter 2019 levels,” said analyst Andrew Lee of brokerage Jefferies LLC, in a note the same day. He was referring latterly to pre-pandemic performance.

JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd stated in a Thursday memo that the Macau operation’s third quarter was “quite a bit better than feared”. The brokerage added: “EBITDA came in better, thanks to solid operating-expenses control.”

Net income for Sands China in the July to September period was US$231 million, up 23.5 percent quarter-on-quarter. The latest quarter compared to a net loss of US$472 million in the third quarter of 2022, a period that was negatively impacted by restrictions linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sands China’s third-quarter net revenue rose 9.9 percent quarter-on-quarter, to US$1.78 billion.

The Macau operation’s non-rolling table win was U$1.29 billion, or circa 90 percent of third quarter 2019, the group said in a presentation issued with the results. Rolling table volume in the three months to September 30 was US$4.9 billion, circa 33 percent of third quarter 2019.

Sands China’s slot win stood at US$159 million, about 99 percent of third quarter 2019.

Sands China runs a number of Cotai resorts, including: the Venetian Macao, the Parisian Macao, and the Londoner Macao. It also operates casino hotel Sands Macao on the city’s peninsula.

At Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, also run by Las Vegas Sands, the quarterly adjusted property EBITDA rose 13.7 percent sequentially, to US$491 million.

Net revenues at Marina Bay Sands stood at just under US$1.02 billion, up 9.7 percent quarter-on-quarter.

The Singapore operation’s non-rolling table win was US$341 million, circa 134 percent of third-quarter 2019, according to the parent’s earnings presentation. Rolling volume was US$8.1 billion, about 112 percent of third-quarter 2019. Slot win was US$228 million, circa 149 percent of third-quarter 2019.

“We were pleased to see the recovery in travel and tourism spending in both Macau and Singapore progress during the quarter. We remain deeply enthusiastic about our opportunities for growth in both markets in the years ahead,” said Robert Goldstein, Las Vegas Sands chairman and chief executive, as cited in a Wednesday press release.

“After reinstating our dividend last quarter, I am pleased to announce that our board of directors has authorised US$2.0 billion of share repurchases under our stock repurchase programme, through 2025,” added Mr Goldstein.

The Las Vegas Sands group as a whole posted net revenue of US$2.80 billion and net income of US$449 million in the third quarter. Those were sequential gains of 10.2 percent and 22.0 percent respectively, on the US$2.54 billion net revenue and US$368 million net income in the second quarter.