A night at the casino might seem like an experience frozen in time -- imagine visions of James Bond or pressing your luck at the craps table -- but the casino industry is changing rapidly, and new developments present a unique opportunity for investors.
Online gaming is becoming legal in many U.S. states, and both old-school casino chains and upstart online gambling stocks are jumping on the trend. Meanwhile, the Asian market, centered on the Chinese territory of Macau, has asserted itself as the largest gambling market in the world, with big winnings for operators who own one of the handful of licenses to operate on the island.
After getting hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry has made a successful comeback. Pent-up demand has prompted gamblers and tourists to return in full force to destinations such as Las Vegas. After all, brick-and-mortar casinos don't just make money on table games and slots.
Like other leisure and hospitality stocks, they operate like hotels, relying on room occupancy, as well as conventions and other gatherings, for a substantial portion of their revenue. Since spending on gambling and tourism is highly correlated with the overall health of the economy, casino stocks are considered consumer discretionary stocks.
If you're looking for some of the best casino stocks out there, keep reading to see six of the most attractive gambling stocks you can buy today.
Top casino stocks in 2025
1. MGM Resorts
NYSE: MGM
Key Data Points
MGM (MGM +1.51%) has one of the most impressive collections of properties in the casino industry. It owns many of the most familiar casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, including the Bellagio, MGM Grand, Luxor, and New York-New York, as well as locations in Atlantic City, Detroit, and Mississippi, among others. It also has 56% stakes in two Macau casinos: MGM Macau and MGM Cotai.
About two-thirds of its 45,000 guest rooms are on the Strip, making it more exposed to Las Vegas tourism than many of its peers.
MGM's stock plunged when the pandemic first struck in March 2020, but has since rallied to post-financial-crisis highs thanks to an investment from IAC/Interactive (IAC +1.09%) and a pivot to online gaming with BetMGM. IAC owns approximately 23% of MGM.
In 2024, it achieved record full-year revenue and adjusted property earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) across the business, with revenue up 7% to $17.2 billion, and adjusted EBITDA rose from $2.3 billion to $2.4 billion. The removal of COVID-related restrictions in Macau also led to a 28% increase in revenue to $4 billion.
MGM was one of several casino operators awarded a new 10-year gaming license in Macau at the end of 2022, ensuring its future in the gaming territory.
Its online business, BetMGM, a joint venture with Entain, is now EBITDA-profitable, on track for $2.75 billion in revenue and EBITDA of $200 million in 2025, a positive sign for the business.
2. Las Vegas Sands
NYSE: LVS
Key Data Points
SPAC
In 2023 and 2024, WynnBET ceased operations in several states. Still, its core casino business remains solid. In 2024, revenue jumped 9% to $7.1 billion, and the company generated $1.1 billion in operating income.
Wynn aims to continue developing big luxury properties and recently announced plans for Wynn Al Marjan Island, a resort near Dubai set to open in early 2027. The company's focus on new markets, such as Dubai and the Boston area, could pay off for investors down the road.
4. Penn Entertainment
NASDAQ: DKNG
Key Data Points
DraftKings (DKNG -1.52%), which went public through a SPAC in 2020, is the only pure-play online gambling company on this list. It has something of a duopoly in online sports betting with FanDuel, claiming 34% of the market behind FanDuel's 44%.
Like many of its peers, DraftKings has used acquisitions to help it grow. In August 2021, it spent $1.5 billion to acquire Golden Nugget Online Gaming, strengthening its position in online casino games to expand its reach beyond sports betting and daily fantasy sports.
Social distancing and stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic led to a boom in online sports betting and gambling, and DraftKings' revenue has continued to surge well after the pandemic has faded. In 2024, revenue jumped 30% to $4.77 billion, though it's still unprofitable as it continues to spend aggressively on marketing. DraftKings did narrow its operating loss to $609 million, but may have to cut costs to reach profitability.
The company reached 3.6 million monthly unique payers as of the third quarter of 2025, although user growth was basically flat. While it's still significantly unprofitable, if you're looking for growth in the casino industry, DraftKings' potential is hard to beat.
6. Caesars Entertainment
Features to look for in casino stock
Casino stocks have evolved from the Vegas strip, and they offer investors a number of different opportunities. Here's what to look for if you're considering casino stocks.
- Growth opportunities: Whether a casino is growing through online betting, new properties, Macau, or regional casinos, it's important that it has a growth strategy that is showing results.
- Profitability: Casino stocks often report earnings in terms of adjusted EBITDA, but investors will want to find stocks that are also generating GAAP profits, ideally with strong operating margins. Most traditional casino operators are profitable, but online betting companies have struggled to turn a profit.
- Dividend yield: Most casino operators pay dividends, and that's a key part of the equation for many investors. Look for casino stocks with healthy yields, moderate payout ratios, and a history of dividend growth.
- Market presence: It's important to understand casino exposure. Markets like China, Vegas, regional U.S., and online all come with different risks and opportunities. Similarly, some operators are more diversified than others.
- Financial resilience: The casino industry is cyclical, so it's a good idea to consider the companies' balance sheets and look for financial resilience. While a lot of them have large debt balances, they should also be well-capitalized so that they can manage any downturns.
Should you buy casino stocks?
As a sector, casino stocks have underperformed the market over the past 10 years, but there have been big winners, including Caesars and online gaming stocks, such as DraftKings. With the expansion of online gambling in the U.S., the next 10 years will likely be much different from the past decade.
Below are several reasons to buy casino stocks:
- Casino stocks are closely correlated with the travel industry, which has been outgrowing the overall economy.
- Casino stocks are high-beta stocks, meaning they tend to outperform in bull markets. This is because consumers and businesses spend more money at casinos when the economy is strong.
- Casino stocks often pay dividends.
- Established casino companies tend to have strong operating margins and benefit from advantages of scale.
- Acquisitions are likely to make the industry more concentrated, benefiting operators.
- Online gambling stocks can offer high growth potential.
How to invest in casino stocks
If you're interested in buying casino stocks, the process is simple. Just follow these steps.
- Open your brokerage app: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
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