NEWS
MEC’s three-year loss tops $306-million
Posted: Friday, February 29, 2008 12:54 PM
by Ed DeRosa
Magna Entertainment Corp., the leading operator of racetracks in North America by revenue, lost $113,759,000 during the 12 months ended December 31, 2007, to bring the company’s three-year loss to $306,403,000.
This year’s loss includes $42,980,000 lost in the fourth quarter, which ended on December 31, 2007, a nearly 7-to-2 increase versus the same period last year. The company’s annual loss was a 30.2% increase versus 2006, when it lost $87,351,000. Magna Entertainment lost $105,293,000 in 2005.
“We remain firmly committed to implementing our debt elimination plan, although the weak U.S. real estate and credit markets have adversely impacted our progress to date on asset sales,” founder, chairman, and acting Chief Executive Frank Stronach said in a company release.
Many Magna Entertainment properties remain for sale, including racetracks Great Lakes Downs in Michigan, Portland Meadows in Oregon, Remington Park in Oklahoma, and Thistledown in Ohio.
Revenue increased 9% to $625,715,000 year to year and 14.4% to $117,286,000 for the fourth quarter. Chief Operating Officer Ron Charles said that the company’s PariMax operations, which include XpressBet, AmTote, and HorseRacing TV, performed well.
Gulfstream Park in South Florida, however, has not performed well as slots revenue there continues to fail to meet expectations, and business on the facility’s core product, horse racing, also is in decline through the first quarter of 2008.
Ed DeRosa is news editor of Thoroughbred Times
