The casino sales, which are expected to close by the end of the year, had been rumored for months and didn’t take the investment community by surprise. “We’re late in that economic cycle and we need to be prepared for the unforeseen.” “These transactions make us far less vulnerable in any global economic cycle,” Murren told The Nevada Independent a day after the deals were announced. The net proceeds from the transactions – roughly $4.3 billion after taxes – goes directly to MGM’s balance sheet, allowing the casino giant to reduce a portion of its $15 billion in long-term debt and allow the company to focus on “high growth potential” opportunities. That is one of many reasons the company agreed last Tuesday to sell Circus Circus Las Vegas to rival casino operator Phil Ruffin for $825 million and struck a sale-leaseback deal for Bellagio with Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust for $4.25 billion.
Jim Murren won’t flat-out predict an economic downturn is about to hit the U.S., but the chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International said the signs are there and he isn’t taking any chances.
