MGM Resorts reported weak summer performance on the Las Vegas Strip as rising airfares and gasoline prices dampened room demand and compressed pricing power. The company controls 40% of Strip hotel rooms.
CEO Bill Hornbuckle said on an earnings call that expensive flights and gasoline ate into room rates, with damage deepening each month of the third quarter before easing in October. "We're going to need relief on fuel, gas, and airline pricing," Hornbuckle stated.
CFO Jonathan Halkyard reported that July room rates held roughly flat compared to the prior year. Convention business helped offset weaker leisure demand in some months, but visitation softened in late summer overall.