Gaming company pushing forward to rebrand casinos with Bally’s name

Rhode Island-based Bally’s Corp. has built name recognition through its recent launch of Bally Sports, company executives said Monday. Now the gaming company is moving on to its brick-and-mortar casinos.

“In the next 12 months, all of our casinos other than Hard Rock Biloxi will be rebranded to ‘Bally’s,’ increasing the awareness of our brand and providing the company opportunities to send local customers to our destination casinos, as well as a national player database and incentive program,” Bally’s President and CEO George Papanier told investors on a Monday morning earnings call.

Whether that includes Tropicana Las Vegas, which Bally’s has a pending deal to buy, is unclear.

A Bally’s spokesperson said Monday afternoon that no decision has yet been made on rebranding the property. Bally’s will operate the property under a deal with Tropicana’s landlord, real estate investment trust Gaming and Leisure Properties, that is expected to close early next year.

“We’re excited about the longer-term potential and across market opportunities we have and will provide incremental information once we acquire the property,” Papanier said Monday.

Bally’s, which bought the brand from Caesars Entertainment Inc. but is unaffiliated with the Strip casino of the same name, generated its highest quarterly revenue total in company history during the quarter spanning April to June, the company reported.

Its $267.7 million in revenues surpassed the $28.9 million during the same period last year. The company attributed the $238.8 million year-over-year increase to reduced COVID-19 restrictions as all of its properties were operating at full capacity by the end of the quarter.

Net income for the quarter was $68.9 million, as opposed to a net loss of $23.6 million last year, the company reported.

Bally’s continues to expand its portfolio of internet gaming, land-based casinos and sports betting through its “omni-channel strategy,” Chief Financial Officer Steve Capp said on the earnings call.

The company added three more casinos to its expanding portfolio during the second financial quarter including Bally’s Lake Tahoe, formerly MontBleu Resort Casino. The company will operate 16 casinos across 11 states upon completion of the Tropicana sale and construction of a ground-up casino project in State College, Pennsylvania.

The company closed on a deal to buy Bet.Works on June 1 and changed the name to Bally’s Interactive. Bally’s also expects to acquire U.K.-based software and gaming tech company Gamesys Group at the end of the year, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Shares of Bally’s Corp., traded as $BALY on the New York Stock Exchange, opened at $49.72 and closed at $53.22 on Monday.

Contact Mike Shoro at mshoro@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290. Follow @mike_shoro on Twitter.