As the UAE integrated property moves forward in Q2, Wynn is thinking about a move to Thailand.

 Wynn Resorts CEO Craig Billings said the company might look for opportunities for an integrated resort (IR) casino in Thailand now that the country is getting closer to regulating them. He also talked about the work being made on the company's resort in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during the second quarter.
 The Wynn Thailand
 During a call after the second quarter's results, Billings gave a positive answer to a question about Wynn moving to Thailand.  The government of the country put out draft rules this week for legal gambling in the country.

 Go to:

 Wynn's CEO talks about the chance in Thailand

 UAE news: Al Marjan's growth, customers, and licenses

 Keep track of EBITDAR in Q2

 Strong conclusion in H1

 Wynn is interested in Bangkok?
 Before, after Wynn's Q1 results earlier this year, Billings talked about Wynn's interest in Thailand.  But now that the market is getting closer to being legal, Wynn is already "active" in Thailand.  Billings said, naming Bangkok as a possible spot.

 Billings said on the call, "Yes, we would go after it through Wynn Resorts out of the US-listed entity."  „It's still early, but there has been growth, which is good to see, and it looks like the Thai lawmakers really want to get this going, which is great.

 The operator wants to know more about the license and regulatory systems, even though the market is still very appealing.

 "In that market, you can find great infrastructure for tourism, a strong service culture, and a good operating expense structure."  So, we're still keeping a very close eye on the process and are working on the ground there.

 Wynn is making plans for an exciting future in the UAE. Billings also talked about the work Wynn made on its IR project in the UAE during Q2.

 Ras Al Khaimah is where Wynn Al Marjan Island will be found. It is set to open in early 2027.  This will be the first IR in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It will cost around $3.9bn (£3.1bn/€3.6bn).

 In May, new pictures and drawings of the project came out, and Billings said he had just returned from a few weeks in the area, where he said work is moving "rapidly."

 He said, "The building is now just over 90 meters tall, making it the tallest building in the Emirate."  "In the second quarter, we gave our UAE joint venture $357 million in equity."  This meant that we bought our 40% share of all 155 acres of Island 3, which is where Wynn Al Marjan is located.

 "Because of this, our joint venture now owns not only the land under Wynn Al Marjan but also more than 70 acres of land on the Island that could be used for future development."

 Billings went on to say that the UAE also gave them access to customers from other countries.  Europe would be a big market for Wynn Al Marjan Island, but he also said that India was very important.

 Billings said, "India is a huge market for this part of the world."  "There are many people there."  The Indian market will be very important because there is a lot of money there.  The UAE also has a lot of business in other parts of Asia.

 “The catchment area is probably bigger than any other project we've worked on. It might be similar to Las Vegas if you think about how many people live in Europe and how strong the international airlift is.”

 No movement on Wynn's licence in the UAE.
 After that, Billings said again that the UAE is the most exciting new gaming market in decades.  He said that the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), which is the government agency in charge of overseeing the market, has made this easier.

 He talked about the news from last week that GCGRA chose The Game LLC to run the first national lottery in the UAE.  Billings said that this should bring more "comfort" in the UAE in terms of making more progress.

 But Wynn's permission for the Ras Al-Khaimah did not move forward.

 Billings said, "I think they will be moving on to the next step in our licensing."  "I don't have a particular date for you, but you can see how things are moving along."

 More money coming in in Q2
 Now let's look at how Wynn did in Q2. The group made $1.73bn in sales from March to June 30.  In the same time last year, this was 8.6% less.

 Casinos made $1.01bn in income, with $304.5m from rooms, $281.4m from food and drinks, and $138.1m from entertainment, retail, and other sources.  This was the only place where sales went down year-over-year.

 When income was broken down by segment, Wynn Palace and Wynn Macau operations brought in the most money.  Wynn Palace's income rose 17.0% to $548.0 million, with a win rate of 23.6% for table games and 4.1% for VIP table games.

 Wynn Macau's income went up 11.8% to $337.3m.  In this case, the win rate for mass market table games was 17.5% and for VIP table games it was 2.2%, both lower than the same time last year.

 In the US, businesses in Las Vegas brought in $628.7 million, which is 8.8% more than the previous year.  The win rate at table games was 21.9%, which was a little lower than expected and lower than last year's rate of 22.9%.

 But at Encore Harbour in Boston, sales dropped 4.2% to $212.6m.  The expected win percentage for table games was 19.6%, but this was less than the previous year's rate.

 As of Q2, Wynn had a record EBITDAR.
 The total amount spent on running the business went up by 8.8%, to $1.46bn.  Even though sales went up, operating profit still went up 7.8% to $269.7m in Q2.

 With non-operating costs of $115.5 million, Wynn had a pre-tax profit of $154.2 million, which is 17.0% more than the previous year.  It paid $7.9 million and took $34.3 million in earnings from non-controlling interests into account. 

 It had a net profit of $111.9m at the end of Q2, which is an increase of 6.4%.  Also, Wynn's adjusted property EBITDAR rose 9.0% to $571.7 million, which is a new record for the second quarter.

 Billings said, "Our second quarter results, which include a new record for adjusted property EBITDAR, show that our business is still doing very well."  "I'm so proud of our teams in Boston, Las Vegas, and Macau."

 H1 sales up 19.1%
 When you look at H1 as a whole, the group's sales went up 19.1% to $3.60bn.  The casino brought in $2.13bn of this, and Wynn saw growth in every area except for entertainment, retail, and other.

 The running costs went up by 14.0% to $2.96bn, and the running earnings went up by 50.7% to $632.6m.  Along with the $281.9 million in non-operating costs, Wynn saw a pre-tax return of $350.7 million, which is an increase of 161.1%.

 The group got tax breaks worth $27.9 million and made a profit of $66.6 million from interests the group did not control.  With a net profit of $256.2m, up 118.0%, it finished the first half of the year.  Also, adjusted property EBITDAR went up by 27.6% to $1.22bn.