Las Vegas Sands Q1 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Quartr
Provided by Quartr
April 27, 2022

There are 16 speakers on the call.

Operator

Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Sands First Quarter 2022 Earnings Conference Call. At this time, all participants have been placed on a listen only mode. But we will open the floor for your questions and comments following the presentation. It is now my pleasure to turn the floor over to Mr. Daniel Briggs, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations at Sands.

Operator

Sir, the floor is yours.

Speaker 1

Thank you, Paul. Joining the call today are Rob Goldstein, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and Patrick Dumont, our President and Chief Operating Officer. Also joining are Doctor. Wilfred Wong, President of SANCH China and Grant Chum, Chief Operating Officer of Sands China. Today's conference call will contain forward looking statements that we are making under the Safe Harbor provision of federal securities laws.

Speaker 1

The company's actual results could differ materially from the anticipated results in those forward looking statements. In addition, we may discuss non GAAP measures. A definition and a reconciliation of each of these measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is included in the press release. We have posted supplementary earnings slides on our Investor Relations website. We may refer to those slides during the Q and A portion of the call.

Speaker 1

Finally, for those who would like to participate in the Q and A session, we ask that you please limit yourself to one question and one follow-up, so we might allow everyone with interest the opportunity to participate. Please note that this presentation is being recorded. With that, I'll turn the call over to Rob.

Speaker 2

Thanks, Dan. Good afternoon and good morning to our colleagues in Asia. Some brief comments and we'll go to Q and A. Our results continue to reflect the pandemic's impact, the travel restrictions, suppressed visitation, our financial results in both Macau In Singapore this quarter, we did generate positive EBITDA for the quarter in Singapore and for the company in total. The good news in Singapore is that travel corridors established last In short terms, we are open for business in Singapore.

Speaker 2

Our conviction to long term opportunity in the Singapore market remains steadfast. The $1,000,000,000 capital investment Currently underway at MBS, we'll introduce luxurious new suite product and amenities for that resort. In Macao, our considerable investments As the market recovers, 4 seasons, Londoner will provide growth opportunities in both premium and mass customer segments. We continue to have the largest footprint in the Macao marketplace and we appreciate the opportunity to provide input in the public consultation process. We look forward to participating in the retendering process as well.

Speaker 2

While the current quarter results in Macao were impacted severely by the enhanced travel restrictions in China, Customer demand and spending in Macao have proven resilient at the premium mass level from both a gaming and retail perspective in periods when the restrictions have been relaxed. We remain confident that we will return to positive cash flow in both Macau and Singapore in the future as restrictions are eased and travel and tourism recover. We consider our portfolio of resorts in Asia to be outstanding platform for growth for the years ahead. In addition, we continue to pursue opportunities to Large scale resorts in both the United States and Asia. The sale of Las Vegas was completed this quarter, which creates additional liquidity and optionality.

Speaker 2

Lastly, we've been to build out our digital presence and to explore multiple opportunities. We will provide additional color at the appropriate time. Let's go to your

Speaker 3

questions.

Speaker 2

Questions?

Speaker 4

Paul, we're ready to go to questions. Thanks.

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, the floor is now open to provide optimum sound quality. Also, we ask each participant to limit yourself to one question and one follow-up. And the first question is coming from Joe Greff from JPMorgan. Joe, your line is live.

Speaker 5

Hello, everyone. Thank you for taking my question. Rob, I'd love to get a little bit more Detail on the recent experience in Singapore with the VTL framework and can you tell us or share with us Business volumes, visitation improvements in March April to date and when we kind of look at the Q1 And looking at the $121,000,000 of hold normalized EBITDA, how much of that was sort of The last month of the quarter, given the benefits from more international inbound tourism.

Speaker 2

Yes. Joe, it's a fair question. The quarter to MBS was It moved upward as we went along. It started $17,000,000 in January, went to $46,000,000 in February. We had $58,000,000 of EBITDA in March and that trajectory is continuing the momentum is going upward in April.

Speaker 2

I think, look, Singapore is back And it will experience the same post COVID numbers you see in the U. S. In my opinion. The question is, how fast does it get there? The demand is there.

Speaker 2

It will continue assuming there's no more surprises from the COVID situation. We'd like to think that Singapore can return to a $1,000,000,000 run rate In this year. So $58,000,000 in March feels pretty good and that momentum is continuing. Great. That's helpful.

Speaker 2

And

Speaker 5

I can't believe I'm

Speaker 6

not going to follow-up on

Speaker 5

the CAL related question, but I think it's much to ask. Can you talk about Thailand and sort of that as an integrated resort opportunity and what the latest is there? I know there have been press reports with your efforts and that as an opportunity.

Speaker 2

Yes, I think it's premature, Joe. And we're looking at a lot of different things in Asia, and that's certainly on a list But I think it's premature to get ahead of ourselves there. I'll pass on that.

Speaker 5

Great. Thank you, guys. Sure.

Operator

Thank you. And the next question is coming from Stephen Grambling from Goldman Sachs. Stephen, your line is live.

Speaker 7

Hey, thank you. Maybe sticking with new development opportunities, there's obviously been a lot of back and forth in New York, specifically New York City, different boroughs, even seeing some headlines around Times Square. Just curious what you're seeing there? How we should think about that as an opportunity?

Speaker 2

Well, New York has been on our radar for a long time. We continue to be in the hunt there. I don't want to get into specific boroughs locations, because I think that's proprietary. But Yes, we remain interested. I think it's a huge market for us.

Speaker 2

We've been very clear about that in the past. The process is there's quite a long way to go. And we'll just keep you posted as we hear and learn things, but we're in the hunt and we'll see how it works out for us.

Speaker 7

And then you did mention, You'll discuss digital when the time is right and they obviously say patience is a virtue, which is clearly paid off looking at some of these stocks. So as you think about the opportunity set In front of you, has anything changed in terms of your thinking of what areas of the industry might be more or less interesting to dig into even before considering where the investment might end up?

Speaker 8

So it's Patrick. How are you doing? So I think nothing's really changed in our view. We take a very long term perspective on digital. I think our comments have been pretty consistent across We're really in a growth and investment stage.

Speaker 8

So it's very early on and we have something to talk about, we'll definitely start discussing it. But at this point, It's early stage. We're building a team and looking forward to the future.

Speaker 9

Awesome. Maybe one last if

Speaker 7

I can sneak it in then. So since the Development opportunities feel like they're still pushed out and you've gotten some proceeds in from Vegas.

Speaker 10

I think you maybe have

Speaker 7

mentioned this in the remarks, but Just remind us in terms of thinking about capital allocation priorities, I mean, is buyback something that's on the table that you'd be thinking about With some of those proceeds, or do you feel like there's enough other things to spend the money on in the near term? Thank you.

Speaker 8

No problem. This is a question that I think we get Pretty often. I'll look for the answers that we gave in our last quarterly call, but I think the key thing to take away is We're very focused on new development. The sale of Las Vegas was really to reinvest capital in high growth opportunities that we think are unique to our company. We feel very strongly about our development capabilities and our ability to execute large scale developments in new markets.

Speaker 8

And we think there's a lot of them out there, a lot of potential. And so we're waiting to see which ones come forward. And as Rob said, where we can invest to get the highest returns. In terms of return of capital, I think we've always said that the dividend is really the cornerstone of our return of capital program. It's something that we want to look at in terms of really long term operational cash flow growth and then we'll size it accordingly and look to that to recur before we actually start the dividend again.

Speaker 8

In terms of share repurchases, we always have been opportunistic to return capital that way as well. And if you look at our past, We've actually returned a fair amount of capital through share repurchases when we felt that we had the excess liquidity. So I think at this point, our priority is make sure we get out of the pandemic, Make sure we have ample liquidity and a protected balance sheet to ensure that we recover from our pandemic operations. We can support our local host markets, support our team members as we go through that process. And we're going to focus on new development and growth and investment in our existing markets, which we've been doing throughout the pandemic.

Speaker 8

And then we'll look to restart the dividend as operating cash flows recover. And then lastly, I think we'll look at share repurchases when the opportunities arise.

Speaker 2

Let's not forget that we are investing $1,000,000,000 Currently in Singapore, we're trying to invest more in Singapore and we think Macau when things reopen might be opportunistic as well. People forget how much capital we could put to work No, you're just in marketplaces.

Speaker 7

Fair enough. Makes sense. Thanks so much.

Operator

Thank you. And the next question is coming from Shaun Kelley from Bank of America. Shaun, your line is live.

Speaker 4

Hi, good afternoon, everyone. Just maybe to actually touch on Macau for a minute. Rob, there have been some bits and starts as it relates to the reopening in Hong Kong. And I think Some positive progress there as case counts have come down. Any signpost maybe out of that market and maybe reconnecting now with Macau that the local team could give us some color on?

Speaker 2

Sure. Grant, do you have the call?

Speaker 6

Yes. Good morning. Good afternoon. Yes, thank you for the question. Yes.

Speaker 6

I mean, at this stage, there is no new information or news in terms of quarantine free travel from Hong Kong to Macau. I think Hong Kong cases have been improved, but we're not at the point where Is there any change in the quarantine policy?

Speaker 4

Grant, maybe just to clarify, is that Specifically as it relates to its interaction with Macau or what about for visitors coming from overseas possibly opening up a corridor To Singapore, maybe help us think a little bit more broadly, if you could.

Speaker 6

I'm sorry, you're referring to overseas visitors From billing and where?

Speaker 4

Yes. From either I think arriving in Hong Kong and then I guess Coming in from inbound places or leaving Hong Kong going to places like Singapore.

Speaker 6

So sorry, you're asking a question about people going to Singapore or to Macau?

Speaker 4

Well, specifically talking about Just is there any sign that Hong Kong is loosening up its overall visitation policy because it's been pretty closed from the external perspective? I guess that's where I'm trying to go.

Speaker 6

Sorry, we're asking about Hong Kong. Yes, they have relaxed. So non residents can now travel to Hong Kong from the 1st May and that was that hasn't been possible for some time. So you can go to Hong Kong from next month overseas into Hong Kong, But you still have to be subject to the quarantine policy once you enter Hong Kong.

Speaker 4

Understood. Thank you very much.

Operator

Grant? Thank you.

Speaker 2

There's something more to say, Grant. I would cut you off. Do you have more to say?

Speaker 6

No. That's it. Thanks, Will.

Speaker 2

Okay. Thank you. Next question please.

Operator

Next question is coming from Robin Farley from UBS. Robin, your line is live.

Speaker 11

Great. Thanks. I wonder if you could talk a little bit more about Singapore and any Change and the composition of business there in terms of what's coming back? Is it more mass? Is it more VIP?

Speaker 11

Is it Higher win per visitor than what you saw before or just more absolute number of visitors? Just kind of what are you seeing sort of come back First, thanks.

Speaker 2

The answer is yes. It's all coming back. I mean, the demand over there for in the month of March, we saw outsized demand from Free independent travelers on the pure leisure side. We saw premium mass. We saw high end play coming out of over the rim.

Speaker 2

I just think Singapore is a unique position. It's obviously Macau is in a difficult place right now, so people are going to gravitate to other opportunities. They want to travel. They're no different than what we've seen here in the U. S.

Speaker 2

I think our MBS products in a very, very unique opportunistic window here. We're hoping Macao opens up obviously sooner, but until it does, I think you'll see a lot more demand than typical. And I think it's from all segments, the team there is Feeling very good about what happened in the month of March. And again, it's leisure travel, it's casino, it's VIP casino, it's premium mass casino, it's mass casino, It's universal and it feels like, remember, a very positive beginning and hopefully without a COVID interruption or change in policy, I believe MBS has been very productive in 2022.

Speaker 11

Great. Thanks. And then my follow-up question It's about, you had an announcement a week or 2 ago about, it's probably a small investment and I think it was sort of an integrity related business For online sports betting. And I wonder if you could just talk about that because it seems like there are some B2B online sports companies that already sort of Provide that, you know, kind of for free as part of their services between the, the leagues and and the sportsbooks. And so I just I wonder if you could talk about what interested you in that angle or what's different about that and kind of what's offered almost For free really by the other OFB B2B providers.

Speaker 11

Thanks.

Speaker 8

Sure. It's Patrick. And I think what you'll see over time It's us to make investments in small companies where we think they have a competitive advantage in a B2B space that has a lot of growth potential And also where we think over time we may form into a larger platform. So from our standpoint, we're looking at a variety of different businesses that are at start up or early stage In order to make sure that we stay in front of technological innovation in our industry. And so this is part of a broader strategy.

Speaker 8

It is A relatively small investment relative to Las Vegas Sands, but we think over time this investment in others will help contribute to our overall digital efforts. So I'm not going to get into the exact thesis behind every investment There's a long term plan for what we're approaching. I think over time, you'll start to see how that evolves.

Speaker 11

Okay. Thank you.

Speaker 4

Thanks, Robin.

Operator

Thank you. And the next question is coming from Carlo Santarelli from Deutsche Bank. Carlo, your line is live.

Speaker 9

Hey, guys. Thank you. I just have 2 kind of timeline related questions. And I don't know, Rob, maybe Best to answer the first and then perhaps something on color on Macau and the timeline there. But just in terms of NBS, Obviously, construction and things along those lines in this type of environment is very hard to predict.

Speaker 9

And I have not gotten a chance to get through the slides yet to see if there are any changes to kind of your expectations for the timeline there. But What are some of the goalposts in terms of construction on that? And then secondarily, as it pertains to the tender process and whatnot in Macau, How do you guys see the timeline for that shaping up as we move through the rest of 2022?

Speaker 2

Yes, Carly, in Singapore, as you know, we're underway in a rather Extensive renovation, dollars 1,000,000,000 plus renovation in Singapore that's underway as we speak. And it's going to take a while. It won't complete until the end of 20 3, but it's going to be very encompassing. We've had as everyone in the world has been impacted by COVID, both getting supplies and labor has been an issue, but It's happening. It's underway.

Speaker 2

We're still working through issues with IR2. We were not ready to talk about that today because we're still working through issues there. Same issues, supplies, labor, costs, etcetera. We intend to complete IR 1, again, 2023, IR I made Wilfred the best student. Thank you.

Speaker 3

The timeline for retendering of the concession is progressing according to the timeline Announced by the Macau SAR Government. Now currently, a few things are at play. Two bills relating to the gaming law has been approved by the legislative assembly And will be approved in full after the panel Discussion before the end of this legislative session in August and we are hearing All kinds of suggestion that it will be earlier than August. At this stage, we are Going to be granted an extension of the current concession until the end of 2022. And That is the time that we expect the retendering exercise will be completed.

Speaker 3

And so After the amendment of the law, then the retendering procedure will start. A lot of information About the retender will come out, we are in the process of preparing for that retendering exercise and hopefully everything will be done before the end of 2022.

Speaker 6

Wilfred, thank you. That's helpful. So just

Speaker 9

so I'm clear, in August, you'll more or less have Everything you need from the gaming law perspective and then that period from say August, if not maybe earlier through December Will be the formal tendering process when everything is more or less buttoned up. Is that the right interpretation?

Speaker 3

That's right.

Speaker 6

Great. Thank you very much.

Speaker 3

Thank you, George.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is coming from George Choi from Citigroup. George, your line is live.

Speaker 10

Thank you very much. A couple of questions from me. Firstly, in Macau, the Macau Court has recently ruled that a couple of your competitors Joining us separately liable for some illegal deposits with junkets. How do you see the likelihood that you guys will also be found liable for this Potential liability after the recent close down of the major chunk is there.

Speaker 2

Grant, do you want to handle that?

Speaker 6

Sure. Thanks, Josh, for the question. I think as you know, the cessation of operations of All of these fixed room junket promoters obviously happened fairly recently in December of last year. And as a result of that, obviously, there are some new court cases being raised by various stakeholders and participants in that system. Currently, there is Nothing material to report from Sands China perspective.

Speaker 6

There are a few cases ongoing, But none of them are material and we will continue to monitor the situation and obviously report back if there are any changes.

Speaker 10

Thanks, guys. And my second question is on your balance sheet. Now clearly, the Q1 Was it quite difficult for your mechanical operations and is putting a lot of stress on your balance sheet at Sun China. When it gets to a point where Shenzhen needs to raise funds, would you guys consider equity as an option or is the cost of debt Still cheap enough that you would continue to look to raise funds from the debt capital market?

Speaker 2

Patrick.

Speaker 8

Hi, it's Patrick. How are you doing? So a couple of thoughts here. I think we're very optimistic about the long term future of Macau. We understand there's articles out about terms around liquidity, I think we have a very strong balance sheet.

Speaker 8

Yes, we've received some stress over the last few years under the pandemics, tough operating conditions. I think we all have. But the good news is that our company as a group has a lot of liquidity. We have a lot of different options. I think the good news is also that we were An investment grade company during the pandemic, which says a lot about the market's view about our ability to raise additional capital.

Speaker 8

So from our standpoint, I think we have a lot of flexibility. Our balance sheet was designed to withstand shocks and a lot of variability in our respective operating markets. I think we And I think where we are today is we'll look to see how the operations continue coming out of the pandemic, which hopefully is soon, look at our liquidity and make decisions based on our available options. So I don't think we're stuck in one particular view. I think we have cash up at parent, we have cash around the system, we have an investment grade credit rating, we have access to credit markets.

Speaker 8

And I think the good news is we position ourselves well to benefit from the recovery on the other side. So I think we have a lot of flexibility and we'll use it as needed.

Speaker 7

That's very

Speaker 10

good color. Thank you very much.

Speaker 1

Thanks, George.

Operator

Thank you. And next question is coming from Chad Beynon from Macquarie. Chad, your line is live.

Speaker 12

Hi, good afternoon. Thanks for taking my question. I wanted to ask about inflation. I know it's Something that people are a little bit more focused on here in North America and it's different in different regions of the world. But Wondering if you could kind of talk about the labor inflationary environment or employment situation in your key markets, Singapore and Macau, and how that could potentially impact margins when the business is fully recovered on the revenue side?

Speaker 12

Thanks.

Speaker 2

I don't want to say anything about our business. Obviously, margins and inflation, it's a question we're anticipating. But I would say that I believe the revenue side of the equation is going to more than take care of itself as far as margins. We're going to be really I'd be shocked if we don't see a big return in Singapore this year and then hopefully a big return In Macao in 2023, I'm hoping maybe in 2022, I don't know. We don't have any visibility more than you do about what's going to happen in China, let's be clear.

Speaker 2

But I do think just like here in the U. S. Margins have gone very powerfully positive because the demand is there. I don't think Asia is any different. The equation is going to be driven by excessive revenue, I think, in Singapore.

Speaker 2

We'll see it this year, I believe, And hopefully, we'll see you at Macau this year or next. As for the operating entities, Grant, you want to discuss as you see as far as Macau, for example, And wage inflation, I don't know how to address that question.

Speaker 6

Sure, Rob. I think right now, Macau is in a slightly different situation. If you look at the wage trend, It's very moderate, if not flattish in terms of wage inflation. But obviously, That's for reasons that are not hard to discern, because there is a pressure on unemployment Since it's such a tourism dependent economy, and then interestingly, in terms of construction works, Costs are again either in line with prior years or if not going down somewhat, Again, because of the demand supply situation that's specific to Macau, as a lot of large scale works Have moderated or been completed. So at this stage, we're not seeing any Significant times on the inflation front.

Speaker 6

Of course, there are some supplies such as food and so on We experienced inflation, but obviously for the totality of our business, this is not going to be material. But I think the important point is what Rob said. I think you also have to consider for our type of business the revenue side of the equation, Which I think is going to be the more dominant driver, if obviously, prices take off.

Speaker 13

Thanks.

Speaker 8

And just to sort of one other thought. I think The important thing to note is where you'll see the impact of inflation is really in construction costs and in materials that go into construction inputs For large scale projects, you see that in the U. S, you'll see it in Singapore and you'll start to see it in other markets in Asia as people come out of the pandemic And really there's a pent up demand pipeline of things that needed to get done, as well as a shortage of labor and a shortage of labor movement related to pandemic restrictions. So that is something that It's a likely thing that to be seen. You're already experiencing a little bit of it in certain markets.

Speaker 8

I think the other thing is the good news is with inflation also comes pricing. And so our business is not tied into any long term contracts. We have the ability to operate within the market. Singapore has always been a very high quality place for labor. It's been an expensive labor market.

Speaker 8

It's always been very tight and we've always managed it. So I have faith in the team, faith in our execution capability to maintain margins through the cycle. I think that's really the nature of our business that we have pricing power, we have the ability to Change rates as a hotel, as a consumer products company and really work through the changing in inflation and in effect make that part of the business margin.

Speaker 12

Thanks, Patrick. And then separately, just on kind of back on the digital portfolio opportunities that you talked about. Just given the current valuation change that we've seen in a lot of the public companies, has anything changed just in terms of the total amount of money that Want to invest in this space given that there might be some really good opportunities in the near term just because of the valuation disconnect? Or are you still kind of disciplined in terms of the total amount that you would put forward towards this effort? Thank you.

Speaker 2

I believe we have to be disciplined. And the reason I say that is our core business, and let's be honest, our balance sheet is what it is. It's in a pretty good place. If our business returns in Singapore like we anticipate and then behind that comes Macao, we get back to $4,000,000,000 $5,000,000,000 $6,000,000,000 EBITDA, Our investment portfolio approach may change as it relates to digital. But at this time, we're going to stay doing what we're doing now, which is being very disciplined, Waiting for our core business to return because there's no one like us.

Speaker 2

If Macau comes back, I think it will be back hopefully sooner than later. We're just coming back. We'll be in a very different place in 6 months or a year, and that may change our thinking. I think it's pretty simple. We want to get back to our core strength No worries.

Speaker 2

There's other things at that time.

Speaker 8

And I think one other thing that's important to note is we're very much focused on building rather than buying. We want to make sure that we create a lot of long term value. Our company has a history of being a platform of development and entrepreneurship, and we're taking that approach through our digital efforts in And we think over time that will provide the most reward for shareholders. So we're very patient. We're thinking long term.

Speaker 8

And yes, there are cycles in valuations across Digital space, in our mind, we'll execute against our long term strategy and take advantage where we can.

Speaker 12

Thanks. Appreciate it.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is coming from David Katz from Jefferies. David, your line is live.

Speaker 14

Hi, afternoon, everyone. Thanks for taking my question. With respect to the U. S. Land based Opportunity set that's out there.

Speaker 14

If you sort of have your druthers or have your wishes come to pass, what does the LVS U. S. Land based presence look like over time?

Speaker 2

Any place is very large scale buildings that can create large EBITDA, we're not looking to be a small regional player, obviously. So that limits The opportunities doesn't it to Texas, New York, we failed in Florida recently, but we're not done with Florida. We're still looking at that. And there's only a few places we can go and invest the kind of money we want to invest in, the kind of returns we want. We're not going to be buying small businesses.

Speaker 2

So I think at this point, As you talk to you today, it would have to be Texas, New York and perhaps Florida.

Speaker 14

Got it. Understood. Thanks very much.

Speaker 5

Thanks, David.

Operator

Thank you. And the next question is coming from Steve Wieczynski from Stifel. Steve, your line is live.

Speaker 15

Hey, guys. Good afternoon. Just one question For me, Rob, you talked about getting to that $1,000,000,000 EBITDA run rate in Singapore potentially by the end of the year. And I'm not sure you're going to answer this. But Is it fair to say that March and maybe more so April on a monthly run rate basis is enough to get you to that $1,000,000,000 run rate level.

Speaker 15

And I'm just really trying to understand a little more how strong recent trends have been.

Speaker 2

Yes. Well, I guess looking at March, you're at about $700,000,000 run rate If you annualize March and April looks better at this point. So I don't think it takes a lot to get there. I mean, to be honest, I don't know why we wouldn't get there. We won't get into specific numbers in April, but the trending in Singapore as I referenced earlier, Robin, or someone asked the question about What's happening, it's outsized demand in all segments.

Speaker 2

So why wouldn't it happen? I mean, I think it's going to blow past $1,000,000,000 frankly. I think it should. It just depends on if we see any pushback in COVID restrictions. I mean, we have an outsized opportunity.

Speaker 2

Singapore is The best product available in the market today, Macao essentially is not available. I think we compete very well anyway in Singapore, but it's unique now. And I think it should hit $1,000,000,000 and better. The only negative there, as you well know, is China is still relatively close to us. So That's the market we'll miss.

Speaker 2

But we feel very confident about our prospects. In the last month, things have gone from Hesitancy to a full bore excitement about what's happening in Singapore. And I think the government, I think I hope they share our enthusiasm.

Speaker 15

Okay, great. Thanks, Robert. I really appreciate it.

Operator

Thank you. And the final question is coming from Ben Chaikin from Credit Suisse. Ben, your line is live.

Speaker 13

Hey, how's it going? I guess just a couple of

Speaker 1

2 or 3 follow ups

Speaker 13

on Singapore. You mentioned $58,000,000 in March.

Speaker 7

Can you remind me, is that

Speaker 13

I believe there was some tax changes coming into play. I guess simplistically VIP and mass each go up roughly 300 basis points, is that was that in March already in the numbers you

Speaker 2

mentioned? Yes, it was. As of March 1, that was in we were impacted as of March 1 by the change Yes.

Speaker 13

Cool. Thank you. And then to I think in the last few days, there's been some changes in Singapore regarding travel restrictions. Yes. Can you remind us maybe, please refresh us where we are today versus where we were in March?

Speaker 2

Where we are today is basically, if you're vaccinated, You can get into Singapore pretty easily. There are still restrictions and you've got to be if you're in the casino, you've got to be smoking or drinking water or something to Take your mask off, but pretty much it's if you're vaccinated, you have full access to Singapore. It's a very different place than it was a month ago. So That's why we're still bullish in Singapore. This is quarantine free entry for all vaccinated travelers and no quota number of daily arrivals.

Speaker 2

There's no more restrictions. So we're back to We're back in business in Singapore in a very positive way.

Speaker 13

Got you. And then just last quick one, not to get ahead of ourselves, but You mentioned $1,000,000,000 a few times, but why not when you're doing $1,700,000,000 right, pre COVID And the new hotel coming, like what's the is the billing just a round number to

Speaker 8

take the trajectory?

Speaker 2

There's no new hotel coming. We're not building a new hotel yet. There's no new hotel. There's a renovation of a current hotel. Look, we just use $1,000,000,000 of bench Mark, we think that's attainable.

Speaker 2

We're not trying to oversell it or over get too excited ahead of ourselves. Let's see where it goes. We're looking at the results in the U. S. We're very Excited what's happened in the U.

Speaker 2

S. The demand is there. We've seen a reason why Asia shouldn't just keep ramping more positively. And again, as you referenced, that's a very unique asset. $1,700,000,000 the peak was the performance of MBS.

Speaker 2

We get back to some day? Yes, I think we will and then beyond that, but it won't be this year.

Speaker 5

Cool. Thank you. Sure.

Operator

Thank you. There were no other questions in queue. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. This does conclude today's conference call. You may disconnect your phone lines at this time and have a wonderful day.

Operator

We thank you for your participation.

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Earnings Conference Call
Las Vegas Sands Q1 2022
00:00 / 00:00