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Monarch Announces All-Time Records For Second Quarter Ended June 30, 2004
RENO, Nev. - 7/26/2004
Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (Nasdaq: MCRI) (the "Company") continued its formidable run of positive growth today when it announced an all-time Company record for the quarter ended June 30, 2004. The Company’s net income, earnings per share, EBITDA (1), casino revenue, hotel revenue, and net revenue during the 2004 second quarter shattered all such previous quarterly results.
The Company generated net income of $4,352,013, or $0.46 per diluted share, in the second quarter ended June 30, 2004, an 86.7% improvement over net income of $2,331,109, or $0.25 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2003. EBITDA (1) for the second quarter was $9,528,821, or 37.5% better than the $6,927,868 EBITDA (1) from the second quarter last year.
Second quarter 2004 casino revenue of $20,944,838 beat last year’s second quarter record of $18,614,452 by 12.5%. The improvement in casino revenue was attributable to overall increases in the volume of play at the Company’s Atlantis Casino Resort in Reno, combined with slightly higher hold percentages in all casino areas. Hotel revenue was $6,434,299 in the second quarter ended June 30, 2004, a 16.8% improvement over last year’s $5,507,037 second quarter hotel revenue. This improvement was mainly due to an increase in the average daily room rate and was supported by an increase in the occupancy at the hotel. Second quarter food and beverage revenue grew 8.1% to $9,440,893 from $8,736,201 achieved in last year’s second quarter.
The significant increases in casino, hotel and food and beverage revenues contributed to an 11.6% increase in gross revenues during the second quarter, which, combined with an increase in promotional allowances of only 5.9%, led to a 12.5% improvement in net revenue during the 2004 second quarter over the 2003 second quarter. Operating expenses in the quarter ended June 30, 2004, increased only 3.9% as compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2003, resulting in a 63.7% increase in income from operations. Interest expense decreased by 14.3% over last year’s second quarter as a direct result of lower outstanding indebtedness, and, as of February 20, 2004, Monarch ceased incurring any stockholder guarantee fees, as its new credit facility does not require the personal guarantees of the Company’s principal stockholders.
John Farahi, Monarch’s Chief Executive Officer and Co-Chairman explained : "Our all-time record numbers during this second quarter clearly reflect on our property as one of the premier casino resorts in northern Nevada. Our entire team has worked very hard to deliver a superior product in a tight market and all team members are to be congratulated. We have welcomed and accommodated a growing clientele to the Atlantis while successfully managing our expenses. I am especially proud of the flow through resulting in improved margins in almost every department. The resulting improvement to cash flow has been partially re-invested into the property by way of capital improvements in order to continuously offer a competitive product. We have also taken advantage of this increased cash flow to aggressively pay down our debt." During the three months ended June 30, 2004, the Company reduced outstanding debt by approximately $6.6 million. |
