New York-listed casino operator Penn National Gaming has reopened five of its properties in Louisiana and will open a further five casinos in Mississippi later today.
The reopened facilities represent over 25 per cent of the company’s portfolio of regional casino assets, with casinos in Louisiana successfully reopening on Monday and Mississippi casinos scheduled to open Thursday.
Penn National has implemented property-specific social distancing and safety protocols, developed in close consultation with state regulators and public health officials.
“As the largest operator of casinos in Louisiana and Mississippi, we are excited and grateful to be able to reopen our doors and welcome back our team members and loyal guests to our facilities,” said Penn National president and CEO Jay Snowden.
“We are continuing to work closely with our regulators and state and local leaders to prepare for the eventual reopening of all of our properties nationwide, and I want to thank the team at Penn who has worked tirelessly over the last several weeks to prepare for this process.”
The Louisiana properties that reopened include Boomtown Casino Bossier City, Boomtown Casino New Orleans, L’Auberge Casino Baton Rouge, L’Auberge Casino Lake Charles and Margaritaville Casino Bossier City.
The Mississippi properties scheduled to reopen later today include 1stJackpot Casino Tunica, Ameristar Casino Hotel Vicksburg, Boomtown Casino Biloxi, Hollywood Casino Gulf Coast and Hollywood Casino Tunica.
Other US states are also beginning to prepare for the resumption of gaming operations, including West Virginia, which is anticipated to reopen on 5 June.
“Penn National is very well-positioned to resume its positive momentum that was cut short in mid-March by the COVID-19 pandemic,” continued Snowden. “Our geographic diversification across 19 states – with no more than 15% of our revenues being derived from any single state – should be a significant benefit as states begin to open casinos on a sequential basis.”
Shares in Penn National Gaming Inc (NSQ:PENN) closed up 12.96 per cent at $26.81 per share in New York Wednesday.