Ameristar announces Q2 income of $17.6m

Las Vegas-based Ameristar Casinos announced second quarter net income of $17.6m, compared to a net loss of $41.3m in the same period last year.

However, company-wide revenue fell almost 3pc, to $296.3m, which the gaming operator attributed to competition from new casinos among other factors.

"The combination of new competition, construction disruption and a pull-back in consumer discretionary spending impacted the quarter,"
Ameristar Chief Executive Officer Gordon Kanofsky said in a statement. "As a result, we were unable to continue our lengthy year-over-year quarterly increases in net revenues."

He also revealed that construction has begun on the company's ninth property, a casino resort in Lake Charles, La., which is expected to open in 2014 at a total cost of $560-580m.