Las Vegas Sands Corp. reports a 65 percent drop in net profits for the fourth quarter-- down to $39.9 million from $113.6 million a year ago. The company cites increased construction expenses as the main reason for the decline.
Total quarterly revenue rose to $1.05 billion compared to last year's $636.3 million, but analysts had anticipated $1.1 billion. The revenue figure includes a full quarter of contribution from The Venetian Macao, which opened on August 28. The Venetian Macao brought in $500.4 million in revenue during the quarter, but its opening may have partly cannibalized traffic at another LVS operation, The Sands Macao, where revenue slumped 16.7 percent to $288.2 million.
Revenue from the company's Las Vegas casinos fell 24.6 percent to $116.1 million, due mainly to lower table game winnings at its casinos, while hotel revenue rose 4.2 percent to $90 million.
LVS continues to develop a string of casino resorts in Macau's Cotai Strip and is planning a leisure resort and convention complex on Hengqin Island off China's southern coast. It is also constructing a $4 billion casino project in Singapore and a 126-acre casino resort on the site of the former Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.