Q: What's the hottest city in North America in December?
A: Vegas, baby.
After the bell yesterday, Mandalay Resort Group (NYSE: MBG ) reported another record quarter, as the red-hot Las Vegas Strip continued to drive the casino operator's results. For the third quarter, Mandalay saw EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) climb 20.1% to $201.1 million. Meanwhile, net income jumped 65.3% to $67.1 million, or $0.99 per share, beating the analyst estimate by $0.11 per share.
Overall, Mandalay's Las Vegas Strip properties reported a 33% increase in EBITDA, as revenue per available room (RevPAR) climbed 18%, and casino revenues -- adjusted for the effect of accounting change -- rose 10%. What's more, each of those properties turned in a record third-quarter result.
The company's flagship Mandalay Bay led the way, as property EBITDA jumped 48% to $66.2 million. The other two hotels on the South end of the Strip -- Luxor and Excalibur -- posted EBITDA growth of 28% to $40.3 million and 22% to $31.6 million, respectively. Even Circus Circus, on the other end of the Strip, saw EBITDA increase 24% to $19.9 million. The Monte Carlo, 50%-owned along with merger partner MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGG ) , reported a 28% EBITDA gain to $30.8 million.
Elsewhere, results were somewhat mixed but mostly positive.
Outside of Las Vegas, the other Nevada properties reported a slight gain in overall EBITDA. The 50%-owned Grand Victoria on the Illinois side of the Chicagoland market posted a 14% gain in EBITDA to $15.4 million, while EBITDA at the Motor City casino in Detroit increased 9.2% to $35.5 million, despite the hike in the gaming tax rate effective Sept. 1. However, the Gold Strike Tunica in Mississippi saw EBITDA fall 15.3% to $6.6 million.
Back in June, Mandalay agreed to merge with MGM Mirage in a deal to create the dominant Strip operator, prompting rivals Harrah's Entertainment (NYSE: HET ) and Caesars Entertainment (NYSE: CZR ) to unite with their own blockbuster megamerger announcement just several weeks later. Thus far, the outstanding performance of the Las Vegas Strip properties indicate that Mandalay is more than holding up its end of the deal.
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Fool contributor Jeff Hwang owns none of the companies mentioned above.
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