Maryland’s record-setting casino revenue run has hit a roadblock after state gambling regulators reported that the state’s casinos only generated $84.9 million in January, the second straight month that revenue has declined.
The revenue numbers in the past two months (December 2014, January 2015) have dropped after the state posted a record $90.2 million in revenue in November 2013, leading many to question whether Maryland’s casino market has already topped out. That could be bad news for MGM’s casino in National Harbor that’s currently in development.
As per usual, Maryland Live took home the biggest share of the revenue pie with a $49.4 million take for the month, according to figures released by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency. Despite continuing to dominate the state’s casino market, Maryland Live’s January 2015 haul fell eight percent from its numbers in January 2014. The Horseshoe Casino, the state’s newest, placed second with a $23.1 million revenue haul, a slight uptick over its December 2014 revenue of $22.9 million.
The state’s three other casinos – Hollywood Casino Perryville, Casino at Ocean Downs, and Rocky Gap Casino Resort – had mixed results in the month. Of the three, Casino at Oceans Down was the only one to improve its year-on-year revenue numbers after taking in $3.38 million, or 6.6 percent better than its January 2014 numbers.
Hollywood Casino Perryville saw its revenue numbers fall 4.9 percent to $6 million while Rocky Gap Casino Resort experienced a 1.8 percent decline to $2.97 million.
The state’s total year-on-year revenue did increase by 28.3 percent over the same period last year. But that number already takes into account the revenue coming from the Horseshoe, which wasn’t open this time last year. Take Horseshoe out and the revenue numbers from the four existing casinos dropped 6.7 percent from January 2014.