October 08, 2007
So far, track is clear for Station to go private
Locals casino operator says it plans to keep building
By Liz Benston
[SIZE=-2]Las Vegas Sun[/SIZE]
Steve Wynn invited the wrath of Wall Street soon after the 1999 opening of his $680 million Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Miss., which earned less than analysts expected.
Mirage Resorts' stock tanked, and Wynn, criticized for overspending on the posh property, faced an unwelcome offer the following year from Kirk Kerkorian's MGM Grand - a bid that ended with Wynn's company and his most precious of creations, the immensely profitable Bellagio, being wrested from him.
Fast forward to the present. Station Casinos runs up against a slowing economy not long after opening its $1 billion Red Rock Resort - the most expensive off-Strip casino ever built.
Once a Wall Street darling and the industry's most impressive growth stock, Station stock falters after missing profit expectations, while analysts question whether the company went overboard at Red Rock with touches such as onyx walls and custom chandeliers. The threat of a takeover, either hostile or more friendly, is palpable.
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