Casino and all other gaming stocks suffered massive drops Thursday in the first full day of trading after U.S. President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on nearly every other country.
Key Takeaways
- Wynn Resorts fell roughly 11% on Thursday
- PENN Entertainment dropped 10%, Caesars saw a 9.5% decline
- Online sportsbook operators also saw a dip on the stock market.
All major U.S. indexes suffered among their worst single-day drops Thursday since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. The S&P 500 (which includes several major brick-and-mortar casino operators) dropped around 5% while the Nasdaq (which includes large digital operators) fell roughly 6%.
Gaming tickers for the day... pic.twitter.com/izGy2QJS68
— Alfonso Straffon 🇨🇷🇺🇸🇲🇽 (@astraffon) April 3, 2025
Stocks continued steep declines through midday trading Friday.
Stock declines reflect broader fears that Trump’s tariffs will spark a global trade war that raises prices on billions of dollars worth of goods shipped internationally. The broader macroeconomic conditions have traders worried this will hurt buyers’ disposal income, the main source for entertainment-based industries such as gaming.
International casino operators hit hard
U.S.-based multinational casino operators were, not surprisingly, among the publicly traded companies to suffer the worst day in the market from Trump’s tariff announcement.
Wynn Resorts, which operates properties in Macau, was among the biggest decliners Thursday, falling roughly 11%. The company operates two properties in Las Vegas and one in Boston, but sees most of its revenue from overseas casinos.
MGM, which has a larger presence in the U.S. than Wynn, fell 9%. Though it has no U.S. properties, Las Vegas Sands was one of the “better” performers Thursday, only declining 7%.
U.S.-focused casinos also see declines
U.S.-centric companies also suffered in the market’s Thursday.
Caesars, with a large collection of properties both on and off the Las Vegas Strip, fell roughly 9.5%. Penn Entertainment, which has no Las Vegas Strip casinos but the nation’s largest portfolio of managed regional properties, fell 10%.
Nevada “locals” casino operators also fell. Red Rocks Resorts (9.5% decline) and Boyd Gaming (6% drop) were among the gaming companies in the red Thursday.
Digital operators' declines lessen in comparison
Companies without major brick-and-mortar assets fared slightly better but still trailed the overall markets.
FanDuel parent company Flutter Entertainment declined roughly 5%, one of the better market performances on the day. The nation’s No. 1 digital sportsbook and iGaming platform by market share would appear better positioned to withstand reduced in-person visitation business but would still suffer the larger consequences of reduced incomes.
DraftKings, the No. 2 operator by market share, fell roughly 6%. Fellow digital-only sportsbook and iGaming provider Rush Street Interactive dropped 5%. The BetRivers parent is a smaller player in the U.S. digital gaming scene but a market leader in Latin America.
Overall impact
Both digital and in-person gaming establishments are positioned for economic pain as the cost of both tangible and intellectual assets across borders will become more expensive and difficult to acquire.
For in-person operators, slot machine parts, dice, beverages, and virtually all aspects of managing these massive properties involve international trade. Online operators don’t suffer some of those complexities, but they are not immune to increased costs brought by the tariffs.
Trump argues this will create more jobs and investments in the U.S. in the long-term, but even in that scenario, virtually all companies across the world are set to be hamstrung by increased costs and reduced customer purchasing power.
