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LAS
VEGAS -- Boyd Gaming Corp. and Harrah's Entertainment
completed separate mergers on July 1, 2004, worth a total
of $2.7 billion.
Boyd
Gaming closed the $1.3 billion deal with Coast Casinos,
creating the fifth-largest gambling operator in the country,
while Harrah's Entertainment cemented its $1.45 billion
merger with Horseshoe Gaming Holding Corp.
Harrah's
now becomes the largest casino operator in the country
with combined revenues of $5.1 billion. But it could quickly
lose that title if regulators approve a pending merger
between MGM Mirage Inc. and Mandalay Resort Group Inc.
The
Boyd Gaming merger will create a powerhouse company in
Las Vegas that will cater to area residents, Chairman
William S. Boyd said Thursday.
"This
brings us to a totally new level as one of the two major
companies serving the dynamic and growing Las Vegas locals
market," Boyd said in a prepared statement, referring
to rival Station Casinos Inc.
Under
the terms of the merger agreement, Coast will become a
wholly owned subsidiary of Boyd Gaming. Michael Gaughan
will remain Coast's chief executive and become Boyd's
second-largest shareholder.
"We
built a great company and now we are joining a great company,"
Gaughan said.
Boyd
said Gaughan's agreement to stay on in a management role
was critical to the deal.
The
two companies signed the merger agreement February 6 and
obtained approval from gambling regulators last month.
The Coast brand will remain intact and all company management
will be retained.
The
combined companies will keep the Boyd Gaming name and
will have revenues of about $2 billion, operating 18 properties
with 10,000 rooms nationwide.
The
Federal Trade Commission voted last month to close its
investigation into the pending acquisition of Horseshoe
Gaming by Harrah's, clearing the way for final regulatory
approval of the deal.
The
transaction also has been approved by regulators in Indiana,
Mississippi and Louisiana.
Horseshoe
Gaming operated riverboat casinos in Hammond, Ind., Tunica,
Miss. and Bossier City, La. Harrah's operates 22 casinos
in the United States, including Nevada, New Jersey, Louisiana.
The company is Nevada's second-largest employer with 42,000
workers.
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