Indiana’s casinos stopped a three-month revenue slide by posting nearly $214.5 million in proceeds for October, according to the state’s Gaming Commission.
Casino revenue reached a high-water mark of $230.9 million in July, but had since tumbled to $206.6 million in September. October’s figure represented a 3.8% increase month over month and lifted operator revenue over the $2 billion mark for the calendar year.
The taxable revenue totaled more than $196.3 million, a 3.7% increase from September. Venues deducted a combined $12.8 million in free play in October, with Horseshoe Hammond’s $2 million the highest amount from any single location. As a new venue, Hard Rock Northern Indiana will pay separate supplemental and wagering taxes through June 2025.
The state collected close to $44.4 million in tax receipts from casino gaming, a figure which does not include sports wagering. Indiana’s casinos have generated $436.9 million in state taxes through the first 10 months of 2021.
Hard Rock claims top revenue spot for first time
While Hard Rock Northern Indiana has quickly become a top revenue generator for the state since opening in May, it had never overtaken Horseshoe Hammond for the top revenue spot in a given month.
That changed in October, with Hard Rock’s Gary location claiming $32.4 million in profits, compared to Horseshoe’s $31.5 million. The key to victory was performance at the tables, where, despite operating 35 fewer tables, Hard Rock generated a state-high $9.7 million in win compared to Horseshoe’s $6.7 million. Hard Rock was the only venue to average more than $100,000 per table at $121,392, with the Ameristar Casino in East Chicago a distant second in that category at $90,876.
Hard Rock was also the only casino to generate at least 30% of its revenue from table games, well above the state average of 24.3%. Horseshoe (21.3%), Caesars Southern Indiana (21.2%), and Ameristar (20.2%) were the only other venues to have at least 20% of their win originate from table games.
On the EGD/slots side, Horseshoe’s volume of slots — a state-high 1,993 in operation for October — provided the most revenue among locations at $24.8 million, with Indiana Grand ($23.2 million) and Hard Rock ($22.7 million) claiming the other podium positions. The three were the only casinos with EGD/slots win over $20 million, while Harrah’s Hoosier Park racino took top honors on a revenue per slot basis with an average of $16,168 generated from its 1,196 units.
Broken down by category, EGD/slots accounted for $175.8 million, with a per unit revenue of $11,865 from 14,817 EGD/slots. Table-game revenue totaled just shy of $38.7 million, with an average of $64,753 from 241 tables statewide.
NW corridor continues to provide bulk of revenue
While Illinois continues to move forward in the licensing process for casinos in suburban Cook County and downtown Chicago, the three Indiana casinos that draw a notable portion of their customer base from those areas continue to provide a sizable percentage of the state’s casino revenue and tax receipts.
Hard Rock, Horseshoe, and Ameristar combined for $20.6 million in table games revenue, which was 53.3% of the state’s total. The average revenue per table at those venues was $85,503, aided by Hard Rock’s strong numbers, but also 32% higher than the state average.
For EGD/slots, the $64 million represented 36.4%, and the combined $84.7 million is 39.5% of the state’s overall casino gaming revenue. By way of comparison, Illinois’ 10 casinos generated $109.1 million in revenue for October.
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