Caesars Entertainment reported a 2.7% year-on-year increase in group revenue during Q1, with record quarterly digital performance offsetting more mixed trends across both its Las Vegas and regional operations.
For the three months to 31 March, group revenue amounted to $2.87bn. This, Caesars said, surpassed the $2.79bn posted in the corresponding period last year, while adjusted EBITDA was 0.3% higher at $887m.
The primary reason for the growth was an 11.6% increase in revenue within Caesars’ digital division, where revenue hit an all-time Q1 high of $374m. On top of this, digital EBITDA was up to $69m, while margins expanded to 18.4%.
Regional revenue was also marginally higher year-on-year, though revenue in the Las Vegas segment remained flat while revenue from other areas declined year-on-year.
While digital stole the show in terms of financial performance in Q1, executives said this was helped by the group’s land-based database. CEO Tom Reeg said on the firm’s post-Q1 earnings call that this is as a key competitive advantage in digital, particularly as customer acquisition costs rise across the industry, adding that Caesars is less exposed to these pressures due to its reliance on existing customers.
“The bulk of our customer acquisition comes from our Caesars Rewards database,” Reeg said. “We’re not swimming in those same pools where prediction markets are making acquisition costs higher.”
Reeg added that significant upside remains in converting land-based players into digital users. He said: “There’s still a gigantic opportunity in converting customers in our database… that play digitally elsewhere.”
Digital revenue up 11.6% in Q1
Breaking down Caesars’ performance across its divisions, digital’s 11.6% revenue increase was driven primarily by strength in iCasino, where revenue rose 18% amid higher player volumes and increased monthly active users.
Caesars also reported improved monetisation, with average revenue per user up 15% and hold increasing to 8.3%, supported by a higher mix of parlays and multi-leg bets. Executives on the call added that ongoing product and technology improvements, including new in-house games and the rollout of Caesars’ universal wallet, have supported engagement. They also referenced disciplined marketing spend and the use of the Caesars Rewards database continue to limit customer acquisition costs.
Elsewhere, Caesars’ Regional segment remained the operator’s main source of revenue at $1.43bn, up 3.0% though adjusted EBITDAR declined slightly. Caesars said its performance was impacted by the absence of the Super Bowl in New Orleans, which provided a boost in the prior year. Excluding this, the segment delivered growth, helped by targeted marketing reinvestment and increased player activity.
As for Las Vegas, revenue was flat year-on-year, with adjusted EBITDAR declining slightly to $426m. Caesars pointed to improving trends versus the second half of 2025, supported by strong group and convention demand. This helped drive occupancy to 95.3% but leisure travel remained weaker on a year-on-year basis.
As for other areas, managed and branded revenue fell 1.5% to $66m while corporate and other activities incurred a $3m loss.
Overall, casino accounted for $1.66bn of all revenue, hotel $487m, food and beverage $424m and other operations $293m.
Caesars reduces net loss to $98m
In terms of costs, operating expenses were only marginally higher year-on-year at $2.37bn. After including $571m in other costs, this left a pre-tax loss of $71m, though this was an improvement on the previous year.
Caesars paid $12m in tax, leaving a net loss of $83m, which was again better than the $98m loss in Q1 2025. The group also noted $15m in losses from non-controlling interests, which resulted in a bottom-line net loss of $98m, less than the $115m posted last year.
Looking ahead, Caesars remains confident in the outlook for its digital business, with CEO Reeg reiterating long-term growth targets. He said: “Digital looks very strong. We’re still on the path that we laid out a long time ago toward $500m or more of EBITDA.”
What did the analysts say?
Analysts broadly viewed Caesars’Q1 as in line with expectations. Truist Securities pointed to improving fundamentals across the business, with Las Vegas trends continuing to recover, particularly on the group side, while regional operations remain resilient despite macro pressures.
Truist also highlighted continued momentum in digital, with strong KPIs supporting the company’s long-term target of more than $500m in EBITDA. It that Caesars is now entering a more favourable phase for free cash flow generation as its multi-year capex cycle comes to an end, creating scope for debt reduction and share buybacks.
Meanwhile, Stifel said investor focus remained dominated by ongoing M&A speculation, which continues to overshadow underlying performance. While it described the quarter as broadly positive, Stifel noted that fundamentals are currently secondary to uncertainty around a potential takeover. That said, Stifel argued that valuation remains attractive, with free cash flow potential not fully reflected in the current share price, particularly if Las Vegas demand stabilises or improves through the remainder of 2026.
Finally, Citizens also characterised the quarter as straightforward, with results largely in line with consensus and supported by strong group demand in Las Vegas and stable regional trends. The bank highlighted iGaming as a key driver of digital growth, although it expressed some caution around the sustainability of 20% revenue growth in the segment as wider industry expansion slows.
Even so, Citizens said it expects digital to become an increasingly important contributor to cash flow. In addition, it said the completion of major capital projects should support deleveraging and improved free cash flow generation over the coming years.
