Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2023.

Financial Highlights

Peter Carlino, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GLPI, commented, “Our strong tenant relationships with the industry’s top regional gaming operators and the general resiliency of gaming revenue drove another period of record quarterly results. On an operating basis, second quarter total revenue rose 9.2% to $356.6 million compared to the second quarter in 2022. Our second quarter financial growth reflects GLPI’s long-term expansion and diversification as a landlord with six tenants with 59 properties across 18 states, including eight new properties added in 2022 and in early 2023 with The Cordish Companies and Bally’s Corporation, which are expected to benefit results in the second half of 2023 and beyond. Our opportunistic approach to portfolio expansion and concurrent focus on strong capital returns and yields for our shareholders is highlighted by our second quarter 2023 dividend of $0.72 per share, up from $0.705 per share in the year-ago period.

“Our pipeline of opportunities with both prospective and current tenants is robust and we believe there are near- and longer-term cases for GLPI to further support tenants with innovative financing, capital and development structures in an accretive, prudent manner. This operating strategy has driven stable, visible growth of our rental cash flows and AFFO, for ten years, enabling GLPI to consistently increase capital returns to shareholders through increased quarterly and special cash dividends.

“A highlight of the quarter — which clearly highlights GLPI’s unique growth positioning with current tenants, was our entry into a letter of intent in May with Bally’s and Major League Baseball’s Oakland Athletics, or the A’s, to develop an integrated casino within a new 30,000-seat Las Vegas stadium for the team at our 35-acre Tropicana site. GLPI intends to commit to up to $175 million of funding for construction costs and may have the opportunity to provide additional construction financing under certain circumstances. In June, the Nevada legislature approved public funding for the A’s Las Vegas stadium paving the way for the stadium project at the site and the ultimate re-development of the Tropicana Las Vegas. The letter of intent provides that the transaction will be subject to customary approvals and other conditions, including a requisite relocation approval from Major League Baseball on or before December 1, 2023.

“We expect to deliver continued record results over the balance of 2023 reflecting our recent portfolio expansions, recently completed transactions and contractual rent escalators. Our disciplined capital investment approach, combined with our focus on stable and resilient regional gaming markets, supports our confidence that the Company is well positioned to further grow our cash dividend and drive long-term shareholder value.”

Recent Developments

• On May 13, 2023, the Company, Tropicana Las Vegas, Inc., a Nevada corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of Bally’s Corporation (NYSE: BALY) (“Bally’s”), and Athletics Holdings LLC (“Athletics”), which owns the Major League Baseball (“MLB”) team currently known as the Oakland Athletics (the “Team”), entered into a binding letter of intent (the “LOI”) setting forth the terms for developing a stadium that would serve as the home venue for the Team (the “Stadium”). The Stadium is expected to complement the potential resort redevelopment envisioned at our 35-acre property in Clark County, Nevada (the “Tropicana Site”), owned indirectly by GLPI through its indirect subsidiary Tropicana Land LLC, a Nevada limited liability company, and leased by GLPI to Bally’s pursuant to that certain Ground Lease dated as of September 26, 2022 (the “Original Ground Lease”). The LOI allows for Athletics to be granted fee ownership by GLPI of approximately 9 acres of the Tropicana Site for construction of the Stadium. The LOI provides that following the Stadium site transfer, there will be no reduction in the rent obligations of Bally’s on the remaining portion of the Tropicana Site or other modifications to the Original Ground Lease, and that to the extent GLPI has any consent or approval rights under the Original Ground Lease, such rights shall remain enforceable unless expressly modified in writing in the definitive documents. Bally’s and GLPI are agreeing to provide the Stadium site transfer in exchange for the benefits that the Stadium is expected to bring to the Tropicana Site. The LOI provides that the Athletics shall pay all the costs associated with the design, development, and construction of the Stadium and Bally’s shall pay all costs for the redevelopment of the casino and hotel resort amenities. GLPI is expected to commit to up to $175 million of funding for hard construction costs, such as demolition and site preparation and build out of minimum public spaces needed for utilization of the Stadium (including, without limitation, a food, beverage and retail entrance plaza and structured parking). The LOI provides that during the development period, rent will be due at 8.5% of what has been funded, provided that the first $15.0 million advanced for the costs of construction of the food, beverage and retail entrance plaza shall not be subject to increased rent. GLPI may have the opportunity to fund additional amounts of the construction under certain circumstances. In addition, the LOI provides that the transaction will be subject to customary approvals and other conditions, including, without limitation, the approval of the MLB owners to relocate the Team on or before December 1, 2023, and certain approvals by the Nevada Gaming Control Board and Nevada Gaming Commission.

• On January 13, 2023, the Company called for redemption of all of its $500 million, 5.375% Senior Notes (the “Notes”) due in 2023. GLPI redeemed all of the Notes on February 12, 2023 (the “Redemption Date”) for $507.5 million which represented 100% of the principal amount of the Notes plus accrued interest through the Redemption Date. GLPI funded the redemption of the Notes primarily from cash on hand as well as through the settlement of the Company’s forward sale agreement which resulted in net proceeds of $64.6 million through the issuance of 1,284,556 shares.

• On January 3, 2023, the Company completed its previously announced acquisition from Bally’s of the real property assets of Bally’sTiverton and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi for total consideration of $635 million, inclusive of approximately $15 million in the form of OP units. These properties were added to the Company’s existing Master Lease with Bally’s. The initial rent for the lease was increased by $48.5 million on an annualized basis, subject to contractual escalations based on the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”), with a 1% floor and a 2% ceiling, subject to CPI meeting a 0.5% threshold.

  In connection with the closing, a $200 million deposit funded by GLPI in September 2022 was returned to the Company along with a $9.0 million transaction fee that was accounted for as a reduction of the purchase price of the assets acquired with no earnings impact. Concurrent with the closing, GLPI borrowed $600 million under its previously structured delayed draw term loan.

  GLPI continues to have the option, subject to receipt by Bally’s of required consents to acquire the real property assets of Bally’sTwin River Lincoln Casino Resort in Lincoln, RI prior to December 31, 2026, for a purchase price of $771 million which, if consummated, would result in additional initial rent of $58.8 million.

• Effective January 1, 2023, the Company completed the creation of a new master lease (the “PENN 2023 Master Lease”) with PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN) (“PENN”) for seven of PENN’s current properties. The Company and PENN also agreed to a funding mechanism to support PENN’s relocation and development opportunities at several properties included in the PENN 2023 Master Lease.

  The original PENN Master Lease was amended (the “Amended PENN Master Lease”) to remove PENN’s properties in Aurora and Joliet, Illinois, Columbus and Toledo, Ohio, and Henderson, Nevada. Those properties were added to the PENN 2023 Master Lease. In addition, the existing leases for the Hollywood Casino at The Meadows in Pennsylvania and Hollywood Casino Perryville in Maryland were terminated and these properties were transferred to the PENN 2023 Master Lease. GLPI agreed to fund up to $225 million for the relocation of PENN’s riverboat casino in Aurora at a 7.75% cap rate. GLPI also agreed to fund, at PENN’s election, up to an additional $350 million for the relocation of Hollywood Casino Joliet as well as the construction of a hotel at Hollywood Casino Columbus and a second hotel tower at the M Resort Spa Casino in Henderson, Nevada, at the then current market rates.

  The terms of the PENN 2023 Master Lease and the Amended PENN Master Lease are substantially similar to the original PENN Master Lease with the following key differences;

  • The PENN 2023 Master Lease is cross-defaulted and co-terminus with the Amended PENN Master Lease;
  • The annual rent for the PENN 2023 Master Lease is $232.2 million in base rent which is fixed with annual escalation of 1.50%, with the first escalation occurring for the lease year beginning on November 1, 2023; and,
  • The annual rent for the Amended PENN Master Lease is $284.1 million, consisting of $208.2 million of building base rent, $43.0 million of land base rent, and $32.9 million of percentage rent.

Dividends

On June 1, 2023, the Company’s Board of Directors declared the second quarter dividend of $0.72 per share on the Company’s common stock. The dividend was paid on June 30, 2023 to shareholders of record on June 16, 2023. The second quarter 2022 dividend was $0.705 per share on the Company’s common stock.

2023 Guidance

Reflecting the current operating and competitive environment, the Company is updating its AFFO guidance for the full year 2023 based on the following assumptions and other factors:

• The guidance does not include the impact on operating results from any pending or possible future acquisitions or dispositions, future capital markets activity, or other future non-recurring transactions.
• The guidance assumes there will be no material changes in applicable legislation, regulatory environment, world events, including a new pandemic outbreak, weather, recent consumer trends, economic conditions, oil prices, competitive landscape or other circumstances beyond our control that may adversely affect the Company’s results of operations.
• We anticipate that annual rent under the Casino Queen Master Lease will increase by approximately $6.4 million upon the completion of the current landside development project that was funded by GLPI at a project cost of approximately $78 million which is anticipated to open in late August 2023. This will increase rent in 2023 by approximately $2.1 million.
• We anticipate that annual percentage rent will decline by approximately $5.0 million to $6.0 million and annual building base rent will increase by $4.2 million on the Amended Penn Master Lease effective November 1, 2023, resulting in an overall reduction to the Company’s 2023 rental income of between $0.1 million and $0.3 million.