$50 million<\/strong> contribution from the city of Aurora.<\/p>\nOn Aurora, Hendrix said the legacy Aurora riverboat will be closed for about two weeks in the second quarter \u201cdue to regulatory requirements prior to opening\u201d the new facility. Snowden later clarified the shutdown would occur \u201croughly\u201d for two weeks in June, \u201cliterally right before we open,\u201d with some timing possibly in late May but \u201centirely in the second quarter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hendrix also lowered total 2026 capital spending guidance to $420 million<\/strong> from $445 million<\/strong>, including $200 million<\/strong> of project CapEx and $220 million<\/strong> of maintenance CapEx. She said the reduction in project spending reflects a timing shift into 2027 for the Council Bluffs relocation, with \u201cno changes to scope or budget,\u201d and completion still expected in 2028.<\/p>\nSnowden said the Interactive segment delivered \u201csignificant adjusted EBITDA improvement of approximately $78 million<\/strong> year-over-year in Q1,\u201d driven by nearly 15%<\/strong> iCasino revenue growth, approximately 5%<\/strong> online sports betting revenue growth, reduced marketing spend, and ongoing cost management.<\/p>\nHendrix reported Interactive segment revenue of $358.3 million<\/strong>, including a $185.8 million<\/strong> tax gross-up, and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $10.8 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\nManagement described the quarter as the first full period under its revised digital strategy, which Snowden said prioritizes U.S. iCasino states and Canada while operating under a more efficient cost structure. In Canada, management said Ontario continued to show positive year-over-year trends in average monthly active users and both sports betting and iCasino revenue, supported by the theScore Bet brand.<\/p>\n
The company is preparing for regulated iCasino and online sports betting in Alberta, with a planned launch date of July 13<\/strong>. Snowden said theScore Bet has been approved as a registered iGaming operator by the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC), and pre-registration has begun.<\/p>\nPENN expects the Alberta launch to result in a $20 million loss in 2026<\/strong>. Snowden said the shift from prior break-even expectations for 2026 Interactive adjusted EBITDA is \u201centirely attributable to this $20 million investment in Alberta,\u201d adding that \u201coutside of Alberta, our break-even interactive guide for the year is unchanged.\u201d Hendrix updated 2026 Interactive guidance to approximately $1.6 billion<\/strong> in revenue (including an estimated $820 million<\/strong> tax gross-up) and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $20 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\nOn quarterly cadence, Snowden said management expects Q2 Interactive performance \u201cvery similar to Q1,\u201d with Q3 the \u201clargest loss of the year\u201d due to Alberta launch spending and Q4 profitability in the Interactive segment.<\/p>\n
Hendrix outlined financing steps taken during and after the quarter as part of PENN\u2019s deleveraging plan. In March, the company issued $600 million<\/strong> of unsecured notes due 2031 at 6.75%<\/strong> and used proceeds to repay revolver borrowings, ending the quarter with $1.7 billion<\/strong> of liquidity, including $708 million<\/strong> in cash and cash equivalents.<\/p>\nAfter quarter-end, PENN refinanced its $1 billion<\/strong> revolving credit facility and refinanced approximately $447 million<\/strong> of Term Loan A. Hendrix also said PENN expects to receive approximately $225 million<\/strong> in funding from Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (GLPI) for the new Hollywood Casino Aurora in June, plus the remaining $21 million<\/strong> from the city of Aurora by year-end. She added PENN elected not to take GLPI capital in connection with construction of the Hollywood Casino Columbus hotel tower.<\/p>\nHendrix said PENN expects to delever by \u201cat least 1 full turn\u201d on lease-adjusted net leverage and \u201cat least 2 full turns\u201d on traditional net leverage by year-end 2026, driven by free cash flow generation and optimized spending. She reiterated expectations for $1 billion<\/strong> in 2026 cash payments under triple net leases and projected $150 million<\/strong> of 2026 cash interest expense net of interest income. On taxes, she said PENN does not expect to be a cash taxpayer in 2026, citing favorable deductions under the \u201cOne Big Beautiful Bill,\u201d acquired net operating losses, and tax credits.<\/p>\nOn consumer health, Snowden told analysts that regional gaming demand has historically correlated most closely with employment levels, which he said \u201ccontinues to be a really good story in the U.S.\u201d He also noted potential benefits from higher tax refunds and said most customers live within a 30-minute drive, making gas prices less likely to change visitation behavior materially.<\/p>\n
In Illinois, Snowden said PENN does not expect meaningful impact from a bill allowing video gaming terminals (VGTs) in Chicago restaurants, given property locations in the suburbs. He added the company expects to participate in expanded VGT opportunities through its Prairie State Gaming route operation business, which he said has continued to grow.<\/p>\n
Snowden also addressed unregulated \u201cskill games,\u201d saying PENN feels \u201cbetter about where things sit in states like Pennsylvania and Missouri than we probably ever have.\u201d He noted a Pennsylvania skill games case is expected before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the coming months, and he praised Missouri\u2019s attorney general for enforcement efforts, adding that reduced skill game prevalence could become a retail tailwind if it develops as PENN hopes.<\/p>\n
During Q&A, management confirmed PENN exited the Washington, D.C. online sports betting market due to limited volume there, while indicating no broader near-term plans to change its state footprint. On legislative discussions around potential tax increases in certain states, Snowden said it remains early, but that lawmakers have recognized \u201cnow would not be a good time\u201d to raise taxes on incumbent operators amid competitive pressures such as prediction markets. He also said litigation is pending related to Maine iGaming legislation and that if implemented as proposed, PENN would invest \u201cnext to zero\u201d in Maine going forward.<\/p>\n
Snowden closed the call by reiterating that management is \u201claser-focused\u201d on improving free cash flow, optimizing corporate overhead, and maintaining capital discipline, with the company expecting to provide further updates when it reports again in August.<\/p>\n
PENN Entertainment, Inc (NASDAQ: PENN) is a leading operator of gaming and racing facilities in the United States. The company’s business activities encompass land-based casinos, pari-mutuel racetracks, off-track wagering, and ancillary amenities such as hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues. In August 2022, the company rebranded from Penn National Gaming to PENN Entertainment to reflect its expanding footprint across digital and traditional segments of the gaming industry.<\/p>\n
The company’s portfolio includes well-known properties under the Hollywood Casino and Ameristar Casino brands, located across multiple states including Pennsylvania, Ohio, Missouri and West Virginia.<\/p>\n
The article “PENN Entertainment Q1 Earnings Call Highlights<\/a>” was originally published by MarketBeat.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source finance.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PENN Entertainment logo PENN\u2019s retail business posted year\u2011over\u2011year strength with $1.4 billion in revenue and $471.4 million adjusted EBITDA (a 33.2% margin), driven by the M Resort ramp and strong Midwest\/property performance. The Interactive segment showed significant improvement (about $78 million year\u2011over\u2011year) but the planned Alberta launch on July 13 will create a ~$20 million […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2302775,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[452166,465209,446118,465210,445978,465208,175927,176147,408109,412704],"class_list":["post-2386427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-council-bluffs","tag-ebitda-growth","tag-felicia-hendrix","tag-hollywood-aurora","tag-hollywood-casino-aurora","tag-interactive-guidance","tag-jay-snowden","tag-penn-entertainment","tag-retail-segment","tag-snowden"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/PENN-Entertainment-Q4-Earnings-Call-Highlights.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2386427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2386427"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2386427\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2386428,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2386427\/revisions\/2386428"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2302775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2386427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2386427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2386427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}