5 casino companies that rake in more than $1B per year
This story originally appeared on OLBG and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
5 casino companies that rake in more than $1B per year
Globally, the casino industry is currently worth over $227 billion U.S. dollars. With the rise of online gambling, some brick-and-mortar companies are expanding their reach to online sports betting and gaming apps. Most of the top casino companies are headquartered in the U.S., many of them in the world-famous gambling destination of Las Vegas. However, the special administrative region of Macau in southern China has recently been giving the Vegas Strip a run for its money, surpassing it in gross gambling revenue. One company, Las Vegas Sands, has sold its Las Vegas property to focus exclusively on the Asian market.
OLBG collected revenue data from Securities and Exchange Commission filings for the largest casino companies based in the U.S. to compile this list of casino companies that collected over $1 billion in annual revenues, from Boyd gaming, which raked in $3.76 billion, to Caesars Entertainment, which earned $9.68 billion.
The companies that included 2019 revenues in the SEC filings all saw dramatic decreases in revenues between 2019 and 2020. Penn National Gaming saw the largest year-over-year increase in revenues at 164% and even the smallest year-over-year increase (44% by Wynn Resorts) is impressive. This list contains a selection of the five companies with the highest revenues.
Boyd Gaming
- 2021 revenue: $3.76 billion
- Change from last year: 79%
Boyd Gaming owns 28 entertainment properties in 10 states, including Nevada, and across the Midwest and South. The company was founded by Sam Boyd, who moved to Las Vegas in 1941. Working his way up from dealer to part-owner of the Sahara Las Vegas hotel, he eventually became general manager of the Mint. Boyd Gaming was officially founded in 1975, when Sam and his son Bill took over the California Hotel and Casino. Boyd was one of the first casino operators in Vegas to hire Black and female dealers.
Wynn Resorts
- 2021 revenue: $4.23 billion
- Change from last year: 44%
Wynn Resorts operates luxury hotels and casinos in Las Vegas, Boston, and Macau. Headquartered in Vegas, the company was founded in 2002 by Stephen and Elaine Wynn, and Kazuo Okada. In 2022, Wynn made Forbes' lists for Best Employers for Diversity and America's Best Large Employers. With 30,200 employees, Wynn's corporate philosophy centers on the core value that "only people make people happy." Wynn Macau was the first company in Macau to give stock to all employees, and 69% of Wynn employees in Macau are locals.
Las Vegas Sands
- 2021 revenue: $5.90 billion
- Change from last year: 65%
Founded in 1989, Las Vegas Sands helped turn Sin City into a top convention location and today employs 42,000 people. Headquartered in Vegas, Sands operates five properties in Macau and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. It's developed integrated resorts that combine high-end shopping, entertainment, convention centers, casinos, and other entertainment options.
In 2022, Las Vegas Sands Corp. sold its Venetian Resort properties in Vegas—including The Venetian, Palazzo, and Venetian Expo—in a $6.25 billion deal to Apollo Global Management, Inc. and VICI Properties Inc.
Penn National Gaming
- 2021 revenue: $9.57 billion
- Change from last year: 164%
Penn National Gaming owns 44 properties spread across 20 states—the Hollywood, Ameristar, and Boomtown Casinos, among them. In Las Vegas, it runs the Tropicana, M Resort, Ameristar Black Hawk, Cactus Petes, and Zia Park. Penn has a diverse portfolio that includes racetracks and off-track betting locations in Texas, New Jersey, and Florida. Penn has expanded beyond physical gambling locations into online betting and owns My Choice Casino, Hollywood Races, and Abradoodle Bingo. The nonprofit Penn National Gaming Foundation provides grants for community development, education, and cultural programming in states where Penn has business interests.
Caesars Entertainment
- 2021 revenue: $9.68 billion
- Change from last year: 88%
Caesars' roots can be traced back to 1937, when Bill Harrah opened a bingo parlor in Reno, Nevada. It became the biggest gaming company in the United States when it merged with Eldorado Resorts in 2020. Caesars operates 50 brick-and-mortar locations and the Caesars Sportsbook app, which allows sports betting in some states. Beyond its flagship Nevada properties of Harrah's, Flamingo, Tropicana, and Rio, Caesars operates hotels and resorts in 17 states. It also has international resorts in Dubai and Windsor, Canada.
