Listen to this articleThe basics:
- DGE’s Q3 2025 report shows flat revenue but lower operating profits
- Borgata, Hard Rock, Ocean led market in revenue and profit
- Hotel occupancy remained strong, with Hard Rock & Ocean topping the list
- Rising operating costs pressured profits across Atlantic City casinos
The Division of Gaming Enforcement released its latest report Nov. 24 covering both the third quarter and first nine months of 2025.
While overall net revenue remained essentially flat in Q3, operating profits dipped modestly, yet every Atlantic City casino remained profitable for the period and through the three quarters.
“The third quarter data from the DGE confirmed what had been feared – this summer’s record total gross gaming revenues simply did not translate into gross operating profit gains for Atlantic City’s casino operators,” said Jane Bokunewicz, faculty director of the Lloyd D. Levenson of Gaming, Hospitality, and Tourism (LIGHT), Stockton University School of Business.
Key figures from the report:
With year-over-year trend
Casino net revenue (industry totals)
- Q3 2025: $942.1 million -0.1%
- YTD 2025: $2.51 billion -1.3%
Top performers – Q3
- Borgata: $228.2 million +4.5%
- Hard Rock: $165.4 million -0.3%
- Ocean: $161.1 million +9.6%
Top performers – YTD
- Borgata: $613.3 million +3.4%
- Hard Rock: $450.1 million -1.2%
- Ocean: $404.2 million +7.1%
Gross operating profit (industry totals)
- Q3 2025: $236.2 million -2.7%
- YTD 2025: $556.9 million -3.4%
Top performers – Q3
- Borgata: $66.2 million +9.6%
- Hard Rock: $42.7 million -6.0%
- Ocean: $41.1 million +12.8%
Top performers – YTD
- Borgata: $177.5 million +6.6%
- Hard Rock: $103 million -3.8%
- Ocean: $90.5 million +18.4%
Hotel occupancy
- Q3 2025 (market average): 84.3% +0.2%
- Leaders: Hard Rock 93.5%, Ocean 92.8%, Caesars 90.7%
- YTD 2025 (market average): 73.3% -0.8%
- Leaders: Hard Rock 85.8%, Ocean 83.4%, Caesars 79.7%
‘Trend of decreases’
“For the fourth consecutive year, Atlantic City’s net revenue exceeded $2.5 billion through the first nine months of the calendar,” said James Plousis, New Jersey Casino Control Commission chairman, in his remarks about the DGE report. “All operators were profitable, despite lower net revenue in comparison to the same period last year.”
“While 2025 net revenue remained on part with 2024s, it was not enough to stop a trend of decreases in third quarter gross operating profits (GOP),” said Bokunewicz. “Since a near-term peak of nearly $311 million in third quarter GOP in 2021, GOP for the third quarter has consistently declined year to year.”
She said that likewise with the third-quarter occupancy, while the topline figure was on par with 2024 – it came at the expense of an over $5 decrease in year-over-year average daily room rate and 17,579 fewer available room nights.
‘Rare indulgences’ take a hit
“Year-to-date data shows evidence of similar pressures on net revenue, occupancy, and gross operating profit consistent with national economic trends,” said Bokunewicz. “Notably, while there seems a great degree of variability of experience/performance among Atlantic City’s gaming operators, ‘luxury’ casino brands appear to be more insulated from recent market disruptions than others.”
Bokunewicz noted that while these trends are concerning, they are not unique to the gaming industry — or to Atlantic City’s casinos.
“Operating costs continue to increase across tourism, hospitality, and service industries, even as consumers find it more difficult to afford daily necessities let alone rare indulgences,” said Bokunewicz.
Plousis added, “Recent strong monthly figures, including those released last week, show that Atlantic City has been competing well for regional gaming and leisure tourists. At the same time, lower quarterly figures show the pressure casinos continue to face from elevated expenses.”
