The last 7 months has been difficult for us all, and impossible for many. Not to trivialize the real struggles across the world that the current crisis and its policy response have engendered among human civilization generally, but it has been frustrating for gambling investors just the same. We have seen fundamentals deteriorate at a frightening rate across nearly all markets and regions, while at the same time corresponding stock prices have remained stubbornly elevated thanks to unprecedented stimulus. The temptation to dive back in as if nothing colossal at all has happened is palpable. At the same time, the world’s most powerful gaming hubs like Macau and Las Vegas are still suffering acutely, struggling to get back up off the ground.
Macau’s Golden Week, for instance has so far proven to be a bust. Casino revenue on the Las Vegas Strip, meanwhile, is still down about 40% from last year as of the latest August numbers. Strict capacity restrictions are still in effect, though just recently loosened at the beginning of October. Hotels are empty and conventions are nonexistent. Europe, meanwhile, and particularly the United Kingdom, is suffering from severe lockdowns of its own, and there is no telling when they will end. It is hard to justify putting money to work in these markets when another flare-up in COVID-19 cases could bring stock prices right back down to their knees at any time.
