MGM Mirage reports business in Las Vegas is still slow

MGM Mirage, the biggest casino owner on the Strip, said business in the largest U.S. gambling city appears to be “bouncing along a bottom.”

“The tone of business feels like we saw the worst late last year, early this year, and we appear to be kind of bouncing along a bottom,” Chief Financial Officer Dan D’Arrigo said Wednesday at an Oppenheimer & Co. conference in Boston.

Strip gambling revenue fell 6.4 percent in May, the smallest drop since September and a sign the worst casino slump on record is easing.

Hotels in Las Vegas have stemmed the worst declines on record by slashing room prices and increasing special offers to attract visitors.

MGM Mirage is unlikely to sell three properties in Michigan and Mississippi for which the Las Vegas-based company has been seeking bids, D’Arrigo said, adding officials “don’t think we’ll get there in terms of valuations.”

“We’ll stay open-minded,” D’Arrigo said.

The company hired Morgan Stanley to evaluate bids for the MGM Grand Detroit, the Beau Rivage in Biloxi and the Gold Strike in Tunica.

MGM rose 48 cents, or 8 percent, Wednesday to close at $6.46 on New York Stock Exchange.

D’Arrigo also reiterated comments last month by Chief Executive Officer Jim Murren that MGM won’t sell any Las Vegas assets at low prices.