Navigating Contradictions: Insights from the 2025 Q1 Earnings Call on Customer Outlook, Buybacks, and M&A Strategy

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Revenue and EBITDA Growth:
- Boyd Gaming reported revenues of nearly $1 billion and EBITDA of $338 million for the first quarter of 2025, showcasing growth on both company-wide and property-level bases.
- The growth was driven by successful management of weather impacts in certain segments, despite challenging comparisons from leap year and the previous Super Bowl, along with consistent trends from core customers.

Segment Performance and Customer Trends:
- The Las Vegas Locals segment saw revenues nearly even with the prior year, while EBITDA was down less than 4%, mainly due to the Orleans, which narrowed its year-over-year declines.
- In Downtown Las Vegas, revenues and EBITDA grew, attributed to increased core customer and retail customer play, healthy pedestrian traffic, and recovery from higher airfares in the previous quarter.

Online Segment and Market Access Agreements:
- Boyd Gaming's online segment achieved nearly 14% year-over-year growth in EBITDAR, driven by stable performance from market access agreements and strong growth from Boyd Interactive, its online gaming business.
- The 5% equity stake in FanDuel represents significant value, given FanDuel's position as the nation's leading online gaming company.

Capital and Investment Strategy:
- Boyd Gaming repurchased $328 million in stock during the quarter, and paid $15 million in dividends, aligning with its commitment to return capital to shareholders, while maintaining a strong balance sheet.
- The company continues investment in property enhancements and strategic growth projects, including expansion at Sky River Casino and the Norfolk resort project, to strengthen its long-term growth potential.