Riviera Holdings to miss filing deadline

Riviera Holdings Corp. will be unable to file an annual earnings report with federal officials on time "without unreasonable effort or expense," the company said today.

The gaming company joins a group of 55 publicly traded companies who have failed to file 10-K earnings reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission on time, according to Footnoted.org.

The deadline for large companies to file the reports was two weeks ago, but smaller companies with market caps under $700 million had until Monday to file their 10-Ks.

MGM Mirage, which missed its March 2 deadline, is scheduled to release earnings today.

Riviera Holdings said it needed additional time to assess its liquidity need and financial position due to a default notice issued by Wachovia Bank, which was disclosed in a federal filing on March 4.

Wachovia gave notice of default on $245 million in bank loans after Riviera Holdings refused to enter a deal under terms set by the bank. The bank wamts  access to all of the cash in Riviera's bank accounts in case the company issues a notice of default.

The bank wants the gaming company to deposit its cash flow into a bank-controlled account before using it for operating expenses.

Riviera Holdings stock was trading flat a $1.05 per share Tuesday morning on the American Stock Exchange.

The stock price closed at $1.91 per share March 4, but dropped as low as 96 cents per share March 9.