Sands to sell its Las Vegas properties for $6.25 billion as it shifts focus to Macao, Singapore

Las Vegas Sands is selling Las Vegas. The price tag: $6.25 billion.

Vici Properties said Wednesday it will pay $4 billion for the real estate — the Venetian, Palazzo and the Sands Expo Convention Center. Apollo Global Management will buy the operations for $2.25 billion, roughly half financed by Sands.

The sale comes as Las Vegas Sands doubles down on its investments in Asia. Before the pandemic, Sands’ properties in Asia accounted for roughly 90% of its revenue with significant investments planned to expand in Macao and Singapore.

“This company is focused on growth, and we see meaningful opportunities on a variety of fronts. Asia remains the backbone of this company and our developments in Macao and Singapore are the center of our attention,” Chairman and CEO Robert Goldstein said in a statement.

In Las Vegas, its bottom line was fueled by conventions, which have been decimated by coronavirus closures and the precipitous drop in business travel and group business. In a recent earnings call, Goldstein said there’s no way for Sands to return to $500 million in EBITDA without a full return to conferences.

Goldstein’s predecessor, founder Sheldon Adelson, had been involved in talks about a prospective sale. The last of the Las Vegas casino moguls, who died in January, had made it clear on earnings calls and to company executives that his focus and hopes for company growth centered on Asia.

Still, the sale of the Las Vegas properties marks the end of an era but perhaps not the end of Sands’ operations in the United States. While it will keep its corporate headquarters in Nevada, the company is turning its attention to the so-called super states for gaming: New York and Texas.

Sands is fiercely lobbying for a downstate casino license to build an integrated resort in New York City. Expanded gaming in the metropolitan area is a market estimated at $6 billion to $10 billion in gaming revenue alone.

In Texas, legalization is still in early stages, but the market is extremely appealing because of its population and lack of competition.

Sands is also turning away from Adelson’s long and notable opposition to online gaming and is beginning to explore opportunities in sports betting and other digital gambling opportunities.

At this stage, the plan is for the management team at the Venetian to continue operating the properties in Las Vegas, once the deal with Apollo is complete.