Las Vegas Sands sees 97% revenue drop in Q2

As the company weathered the shutdown of its properties amid the coronavirus outbreak, Las Vegas Sands released its quarterly earnings report on Wednesday, which shows a a net revenue drop of more than 97%.

It the first of Las Vegas' casino-resort companies to reveal the financial toll from Nevada's gaming moratorium, News 3 LV reports.

The company reported a net revenue through April, May, and June of $98 million, a steep drop from the more than $3.3 billion in revenue reported over the same period in 2019.

Sands ultimately posted a net loss of $985 million over that time, compared to last year's net income of $1.11 billion.

The Las Vegas properties, which include Venetian and Palazzo on the Las Vegas Strip, had net revenue of just $36 million, down more than 92% from the $446 million posted a year ago.

All casinos in Nevada were ordered to close in mid-March and did not receive the go-ahead to reopen until June 4.

Despite the drop in revenue, Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson says the company is beginning its rebound.

"I am pleased to say that the early stages of the recovery process from the COVID-19 pandemic in each of our markets is now underway," Adelson said in a statement. "Our greatest priority during this period of the recovery remains our deep commitment to supporting our team members and to helping those in need in each of our local communities of Macao, Singapore and Las Vegas."

Executives said during an earnings call Wednesday that the recovery of Sands' Las Vegas properties could take longer than for those in Asia, citing the reliance on groups and conventions to drive business.

"We're in a world of hurt here, in terms of Las Vegas," Chief Operating Officer Rob Goldstein said on the call, explaining that Sands expects "to take a zero" on convention and banquet business for the rest of 2020.

"Vegas is dependent on airlift, it's dependent on group and convention," said Goldstein. "It's not a casino-driven market anymore, so we're struggling here. And I think I speak for Las Vegas - Venetian and Palazzo - that I assume that may translate to other properties as well."