It’s been a rocky road for Indiana casinos lately. While November continued a downward trend year-over-year, a glass-half-full point of view could look at the month as a slight rebound with upward momentum moving forward.
According to numbers released by the Indiana Gaming Commission, the state’s casinos reported $177.4 million in adjusted gross revenue. That’s $2.8 million more than October’s numbers.
There are two ways to view Indiana casino revenue results from November. You can highlight the alarming trend that shows a steady decline year-over-year. However, you can also point out that the industry is still in a good place, with reinforcements coming soon.
With the future of Indiana online casinos up in the air, brick-and-mortar casinos will be an essential source of revenue for the state in the foreseeable future.
Good news: Indiana casinos bounce back from worst month of the year
Resilience is “the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties.” The $174.6 million Indiana casinos generated in October was the lowest total produced in 2023.
From the optimistic perspective, anything above that is a win. $177.4 million in AGR in November is a slight increase from October. However, it is an increase nonetheless. You can’t make the journey forward without taking the first step. In November, the state’s casinos won $154 million from slot machines and $36.7 million from table games.
Slots and table game winnings are both up from last month.
Thus, the casino industry has momentum heading into the end of 2023, with reinforcements for the industry coming in 2024. Next spring, the new Terre Haute Casino will open, bringing a 56,000-square-foot gaming floor, a 122-room hotel and various new options for gamblers.
Additionally, Harrah’s Hoosier Park is almost done with a $40 million expansion, adding 30,000 square feet of gaming space with a high-limit area, 150 new slot machines, 11 new table games and more food and drink options.
Bad news: Ninth straight month of a year-over-year revenue drop for Indiana casinos
Now for the “glass-half-empty” perspective. November marks the ninth consecutive month of a year-over-year revenue decline for Indiana casinos. Indiana casinos enjoyed year-over-year gains in January and February before the slide began in March. The decline has continued each month through November.
Casino gaming revenue dropped by 3.7% from last November’s total of $184.3 million. In order to break this streak, Indiana casinos would need to make around $192.7 million this December to even come close to matching December 2022. That would mean we’d need to see an 8.6% month-over-month increase. This means that the AGR from this December would need to be around $15.2 million more than what was generated in November.
| Casino | November 2023 Revenue | November 2022 Revenue | Year-over-Year Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana | $34,838,135 | $34,140,570 | 2.0% |
| Horseshoe Indianapolis | $26,154,752 | $27,012,142 | -3.1% |
| Horseshoe Hammond | $21,399,350 | $24,496,115 | -12.6% |
| Caesars Southern Indiana | $18,556,043 | $18,258,377 | 1.6% |
| Harrah’s Hoosier Park | $16,428,473 | $17,564,637 | -6.4% |
| Bally’s Evansville | $12,780,521 | $12,467,133 | 2.5% |
| Ameristar Casino | $11,672,578 | $13,535,948 | -13.7% |
| Hollywood Lawrenceburg | $10,944,135 | $11,419,807 | -4.1% |
| Blue Chip Casino | $8,898,975 | $9,215,820 | -3.4% |
| Belterra Casino | $6,500,249 | $6,794,700 | -4.3% |
| French Lick Resort | $5,873,302 | $5,828,744 | 0.7% |
| Rising Star Casino | $3,412,967 | $3,646,628 | -6.4% |
| TOTALS | $177,459,480 | $184,380,623 | -3.7% (average) |
Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana is one of the few casinos in the state that saw year-over-year growth in November. The venue made $34.8 million in revenue during November, maintaining its place as the highest-grossing casino in Indiana.
Three other casinos saw revenue increases from year to year, while the other eight saw declines, with Ameristar Casino seeing the biggest drop at 13.7%.
