By Doyinsola Oladipo
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Las Vegas Sands Corp's second-quarter revenue exceeded Wall Street estimates, benefiting from non-gaming programming in Macao as tourism rebounds from China's loosening of its zero-COVID policy and mass gaming reaching another record in Singapore.
The casino operator's revenue rose to $2.5 billion in the second quarter from $1.05 billion a year earlier, which surpassed analysts' average estimate of $2.39 billion.
"We were pleased to see the robust recovery in travel and tourism spending underway in both Macao and Singapore progress during the quarter," Robert G. Goldstein, Las Vegas Sands chief executive officer said in a statement.
Casino operators with a presence in Macao, located off China's coast, are looking to increase margins by leaning on non-gaming activities like entertainment, retail, and food to increase revenue as people are still visiting at levels below pre-pandemic levels.
Shares of the casino operator fell about 2.8% in trading after the bell.
Renovation disruptions in Singapore are affecting the company's margins at its only Singapore location and air travel from China remains below pre-pandemic levels, the company told investors on a call. The company operates 5 properties in Macao.
Las Vegas Sands resumed its dividend and will pay out 20 cents per common share, with the first dividend to be paid on Aug. 16.
There may be some disappointment that dividends and share repurchases might be more balanced moving forward when compared to pre-pandemic which was more focused on dividends, said Morningstar analyst Dan Wasiolek.
The company earned an adjusted 41 cents per share in the quarter, missing analysts' average expectations for 43 cents per share, according to Refinitiv data.
(Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Editing by Chris Reese and Stephen Coates)
