MGM National Harbor sees its first year-on-year revenue decline in May

Maryland's six privately owned casinos brought in combined revenue of $152.3 million in May, down 2.7 percent from the same month a year prior.

The year-over-year decline was also present in two of the state's largest casinos, with MGM National Harbor and Caesars' Horseshoe Casino Baltimore both posting revenue decreases in May of 5.1 and 14.6 percent, respectively. Of the total May gaming revenue, the state of Maryland collected $63.7 million for state programs, including its Education Trust Fund.

The latest report from Maryland Lottery and Gaming show that the total monthly revenue collected from the state's casinos have for the most part experienced a steady rise this year, with the exception of a small drop between January and February. The industry also set a new record in March when revenue totals peaked at $163.3 million. Revenue from the casinos was $156.6 million one year ago in May 2018.

In a statement about the figures, Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director Gordon Medenica said the long-term growth of the casinos have and will continue to be positive. “As Maryland’s casinos reach full development of their respective markets, we will begin to see more volatility, as today’s report shows,” he said.

MGM National Harbor and Horseshoe Casino both had a difficult month and posted revenue totals in May that were at least $3 million less than what they earned in the same month a year prior. MGM, the state's highest-earning casino in May, brought in $59.1 million, while Horseshoe totaled more than $20.5 million.

Four of Maryland's casinos reported year-over-year revenue growth in May, including Ocean Downs Casino, which saw a 12.5 percent increase over May 2018. The Eastern Shore casino brought in $7.2 million in revenue last month.

Live Casino and Hotel generated the second highest revenue last month at $53.5 million — a 2.8 percent increase over the same month a year prior. Hollywood Casino Perryville saw a 1.9 percent increase with $6.9 million in revenue and Rocky Gap Casino Resort increased its revenue 0.2 percent to $4.9 million.

To date, casinos and gaming in Maryland have yielded $1.6 billion in fiscal year 2019, up 5.7 percent over the same period a year prior, as reported by Baltimore Business Journal. Casino gaming revenues also support local communities and jurisdictions where the six casinos are located, as well as Maryland’s horse racing industry.