The company is confidently moving ahead with new casino builds in Nevada, even if the projects cost more to complete because of tariff increases.
Boyd Gaming Corp. is confidently moving ahead with new casino builds in Nevada and Virginia, even if the projects cost more to complete because of tariff increases or other external economic factors, company executives said Thursday.
Buoyed by what the company’s president and chief executive officer described as “the strongest balance sheet in our history,” Boyd said the Cadence Crossing casino project in Henderson and its $750-million casino project in Norfolk, Va., are both on schedule, as is the Sky River casino expansion project in northern California.
Josh Hirsberg, executive vice president and chief financial officer for Boyd Gaming, said the Las Vegas-based company approached its current capital projects from a “position of strength,” citing strategic planning in terms of purchasing and development.
“We feel very comfortable about where we’re sitting,” Hirsberg said Thursday during Boyd’s quarterly earnings call. “At the end of the day, when we got through (the) analysis, quite honestly, we felt very comfortable with the risk relative to our existing budgets. We don’t feel like (with) what we know today that any of our budgets would have to change.”
Boyd broke ground earlier this month on Cadence Crossing, a 50,000-square-foot casino being built on the site of the former Joker’s Wild casino in Henderson. It is Boyd’s first new casino development in 20 years.
The company announced comparable year-over-year financial results for the first quarter of 2025, driven by growth in its digital, downtown Las Vegas and Midwest/South market segments. Boyd’s locals market was down roughly 4 percent compared to 2024, but the company attributed that to challenges faced by The Orleans hotel-casino, primarily road construction and nearby competition.
Keith Smith, Boyd’s president and CEO, said “play from our core customers continued to grow on a company-wide basis during the first quarter.” Smith said the company’s downtown Las Vegas casinos were aided by an increase in Hawaiian visitation during the quarter.
Boyd reported $222.8 million in revenue from Las Vegas locals casinos and $57.3 million from its downtown properties. Across all markets, including digital, Boyd reported $991.6 million in quarterly revenue.
Boyd’s first quarter adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) was $309.4 million, up from $303.3 million last year.
“Our revenue and EBITDAR (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and restructuring) growth in the first quarter reflected the strength of our diversified business, the resiliency of our customer base, and the appeal of our properties,” Smith said.
