Isle of Capri Casinos CEO: Core customer is resilient

Will Atkinson | Jul 02, 2008 4:17pm EDT | Comment

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Isle of Capri Casinos (Nasdaq:ISLE) CEO James Perry said the economic situation is volatile for the casino operator.

“Despite that uncertainty, while we see some softness in the casual customer, we are seeing resilience in the core customer,” Perry said. “The core customers who gamble are maintaining their profiles. They may have one less visit per month but we are still seeing a solid database business, which is reminiscent of my experience during the early ’90s.”

Perry said several interested parties who are interested in buying Isle of Capri’s U.K. operations have contacted the Saint Louis-based company. The company has retained UBS to advise the company on its options, he said.

Before the opening, Isle of Capri reported a fourth-quarter loss of $51.3 million, or $1.66 per share, versus a loss of $14.6 million, or $0.48 per share, a year earlier. On an adjusted basis, Isle of Capri lost $0.06 per share. Wall Street analysts expected a loss of $0.12 per share.

Quarterly revenue increased 15% to $350.1 million from $304.7 million a year ago. Wall Street analysts anticipated $301.8 million.

For the three months ended April 27, Isle of Capri recorded $78.7 million in write-offs and valuation charges, versus $7.8 million a year earlier.

The firm’s quarterly operating expenses totaled $361 million, up 49% from $242.5 million during the same period of 2007.

During 2009, Isle of Capri will take a write-down of $6 million regarding a failed Oregon project.

“We made a decision to defer this project because of the current environment, including the credit markets,” the CEO said. “We are still interested in Oregon as an opportunity but we have no further financial commitment at this time.”

The chief executive also said the firm expects to see improvement in its Iowa business in 2009.

In Thursday’s trading, ISLE shares were down 5.62% to $4.20.