Atlantic City Casinos net $547 Million Profit in 2015

2014 was no doubt a terrible year in Atlantic City history, as four of their 12 casinos closed. But it appears that these closures have paved the way for the remaining eight casinos to be profitable.

These eight casinos combined for a $547 million gross operating profit last year, and their revenue increased over 40 percent from 2014.

Overall, seven of the eight casinos booked a profit, with the Tropicana (down 22 percent) being the lone casino that struggled.

“Atlantic City’s casino industry is alive and quite well,” said Matt Levinson, who heads the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. He added that the figures are “an indication that the market is stabilizing after several years of turmoil. Every single operator reported a very solid performance for the year.”

Gross operating profit takes into earnings before depreciation, interest, taxes and other expenses. This is the first year in almost a decade that Atlantic City casinos have seen their revenue increase, rather than drop.

However, as Philly.com reports, the celebration may be short-lived because New Jersey residents will vote in November on whether they should add more casinos in northern New Jersey. The idea is to better compete with casinos in New York City, but this would also hurt business in Atlantic City.

Until this point comes, though, the once-booming town has reason to cheer. Resorts will especially be reveling in their success after hauling in a $15.6 million profit – 525 percent above last year. Golden Nugget also fared quite well with a $22.6 million profit – 396 percent above 2014’s numbers. Bally’s earned $39.9 million in profit – 77 percent more than last year.

The three biggest casinos in of sheer numbers were Borgata ($216m profit, up 36 percent), Harrah’s ($122m profit, up 26 percent) and Caesars ($83.4m profit, up 39 percent).

Despite all their troubles, even Trump Taj Mahal managed to turn a $1.1 million operating loss in 2014 into a $3.1 million profit for 2015.

Moving to New Jersey online casinos, Caesars Interactive-NJ went from a $12.3 million operating loss in 2014 to collecting $4 million in profit last year. Unfortunately, Resorts Digital saw their $1.6 million loss in 2014 increase to a worrisome $6.5 million operating loss last year.

It remains to be seen if Atlantic City can build on their first truly successful year in almost a decade. This is especially the case with a vote coming on northern New Jersey casinos. But for now, they will try to continue booking profits as we head towards the busy summer season.