New arrival for Vegas

[jetset]

http://www.easybourse.com/bourse-act...83306f12124e6d

LAS VEGAS (AFP)--His competitors face free falling stock prices and potential bankruptcies, but Steve Wynn's company is sitting pretty as it prepares to open the doors on Monday to its lavish new resort, Encore.
The $2.3 billion, 2,000-room hotel-casino, which is attached to the three-year-old Wynn Las Vegas on the Strip, debuts at a moment when Las Vegas is gripped in its worst downturn in decades.

[NASHVEGAS]

It is fact that Wynn is the least leveraged of the Big Four and has the best chance (no pun) of surviving as I suspect the worst is yet to come economically.

Steve Wynn is an intangible asset (i.e.Wynn's stock actually traded in the $70 price range in February 2005 before The Wynn's opening in April 2005 and thus before a hand of Blackjack was ever dealt) and just maybe. Today's price is ~ $43 which is down from it's October 2007 high of ~$164. Nothing wrong with Wynn, who has a great relationship with the media remaining positive but there may be something wrong with the timing and opening of The Encore (soon to be followed by the opening of MGM's City Center).

In actuality, Wynn has been cutting costs and very demanding (Not sure on how his issue with Dealer tips was actually resolved). Some current employees have been required to assume additional workloads per my recent conversation with a middle management employee that just resigned due to the overwhelming workload, hours and associated stress.

So Steve is terrific at P.R. and is allowed to paint a bed of roses. I also believe he waited to take his deserved shot at his arch enemy as Wynn usually maintains the high road publically. Afaic and others', Adelson has had it coming for years and I do not blame Wynn. I just hope he can sail through the rough waters ahead, himself.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/36367234.html

Dec. 18, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

NORM: Wynn has words for rival Adelson
NORM CLARKE

""Hotel developer Steve Wynn, confident he's sitting on the next big thing, has a response for an archrival's proclamation that the Wynn era was over.

Back in January, fellow gaming giant Sheldon Adelson, then the third-richest man in America with a $28 billion fortune, said Wynn's time "has come and gone."

Wynn held his fire until Wednesday, five days before opening Encore, his high-end followup to Wynn Las Vegas.

"Yeah," Wynn said in an interview with Vegas Confidential, "and I remember when he said it, I started to pack up. I figured anybody who is the master of the universe must know everything. Who am I to argue?

"My reaction," said Wynn, "is the same as since his arrival on the scene. Total incredulity. He has surprised me in every single way. He's quite an extraordinary fellow, Sheldon, and his approach has been singular, to say the least, to the industry and to life in general.

"And I think it's pretty safe to say that hardly any of us have seen anybody quite like Sheldon and we wish him well."

Whiplashed by an economic storm, Adelson, who built The Venetian and The Palazzo across from Wynn and went full throttle overseas, saw 95 percent of his wealth disappear this year.

"You have to give him credit for being fearless," said Wynn. "Who else would have enough guts to start six hotels at once without the money to finish them? That's extraordinary. I know it's an old-fashioned idea but I've always had my money all done before I broke ground. I know that's old-fashioned these days, but that's why our interest rate is 3 percent here on our bank line, here and China. I don't know what anyone else is paying but I borrowed the money before I started anything and my builder told me he's going to give me back $40-odd million. We're getting a refund."

Asked if he made a bid for Treasure Island, which billionaire Phil Ruffin purchased from MGM Mirage this week for $775 million, Wynn shook his head no.

In November, Wynn had predicted that MGM Mirage would have to start selling some of its Strip properties to pay for the rising cost of the CityCenter, which started with a projected cost of about $7 billion and has soared past $10 billion...................""

[jetset]

An entertaining read - Wynn has a wonderful and very clever way with words in describing Adelson, imo.

[dominique]

Construction on the city center has stopped almost completely...

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Construction on the city center has stopped almost completely...

Ballgame in a few so I do not have time for much of a post re:MGM.

Articles both in the SUN and LVRJ on Thursday and Friday that it is full speed ahead (which could change in a few minutes,LOL). A link to the Sun article below and another so we can spy

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008...12000-workers/

http://www.earthcam.com/usa/nevada/lasvegas/

GO TITANS!!