Regional casino operators have had a rough go of it in recent years. A recession hit when companies were highly leveraged, leading to a few bankruptcies, and those companies that survived are now fighting an expansion of gaming across the country. States that also felt the pinch of budget deficits saw gaming as a way to increase revenue, and Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and New York are just a few of the states to expand gaming.
The result has been fast-falling revenue in former hot spots like Atlantic City, and dropping profits, as well. Boyd Gaming (BYD +0.01%) and Caesars Entertainment (CZR +0.00%) have been two of the hardest hit despite their exposure to Las Vegas. Pinnacle Entertainment (NYSE: PNK) increased its exposure to regional markets with the acquisition of Ameristar Casinos, but is still losing money each quarter.
Penn National (PENN +1.56%) has done fairly well on the market, but that's primarily because it pushed real estate assets into a REIT. At the end of the day, operations are still struggling for Penn, too.
If you're going to invest in gaming, bet on companies that have international exposure in Asia, where Macau is now the world's largest gaming market, and Singapore is providing incredible profits. For more details on the regional situation, watch the video below.
