Gaming and Leisure Properties focused on creating incremental value

Gaming and Leisure Properties has praised a number of proactive measures initiated throughout the second quarter in an attempt to mitigate COVID impacts, as the real estate investment trust publishes its latest financial update. 

GLPI details that it has collected approximately 99 per cent of contractual rent this year through July, with all tenants up to date with respect to their rental obligations other than Casino Queen, whom the group has collected a partial payment from and continue to work with on a deferred agreement.

For the quarter the firm recorded revenue of $262m, a 9.3 per cent drop from $289m, net income rose 20.8 per cent to finish up at $112.4m (2019: $93m) and adjusted EBITDA decreased 5.3 per cent from $260.9m to $246.9m.

GLPI’s performance for the six month period to June 30, 2020, saw revenue drop 5.4 per cent to $545.4m (2019: $576.8m), net income rose 12.4 per cent from $186m to $209.2m and adjusted EBITDA declined less than one percentage point to $511.2m (2019: $515.9m).

Further moves during the quarter saw the group receive approval from the Missouri Gaming Commission to own the Lumière Place Casino and Hotel, with an intention to close the transaction and enter into a new lease with Caesars for the asset prior to the October 1, 2020 maturity date of a prior loan made in 2018 in connection with the entity.

Peter Carlino, chairman and CEO of GLPI, explained, “Throughout the second quarter we took active measures to offset the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on our leading, diversified portfolio of regional gaming assets, which are managed by the industry’s top operators. Our initiatives enhanced liquidity and provided the sector’s only investment-grade balance sheet with incremental financial flexibility. 

“At the same time, our efforts supported our tenants and ensured the continuity and predictability of our rental cash flows. Recent amendments and increases to the size of our credit facility and the proceeds from our recent $500.0 million public offering of 4.00 per cent senior notes due 2031 enabled the repayment of all borrowings under our $1.175bn revolving credit facility.  

“These efforts, along with the encouraging reopening of 43 of 45 of our properties, and the actions our industry leading publicly traded tenants have taken to strengthen their balance sheets through public market capital raises, have significantly increased the visibility and predictability of our rental receipts going forward. 

“We remain focused on creating incremental value and cash flows from the transactions completed with our tenants since the pandemic outbreak. We will also continue to prudently manage our balance sheet and capital structure to deliver attractive shareholder returns.”