Nevada gaming revenue surges

Shares of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS – News), the operator of the Palazzo and Venetian resorts and the largest U.S. casino operator by market value, are down 3% today despite news that Nevada’s gambling revenue surged 16% in May, the largest monthly increase since 2006. Nevada casinos collected $984 million from casinos in May compared with $847.1 million in May 2010, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which cited the state’s Gaming Control Board.

The news isn’t providing any assistance to the Casino Stocks Index, which is down 1.5%. The Index has jumped nearly 16% in the past month. Revenue on the Las Vegas strip rose almost 29% to $580.4 million from $450.2 million in May, according to the Review-Journal. That’s good for the best increase in Strip revenue since February 2010.

All areas of Clark County, except for Laughlin, showed increases in May gambling revenue. Laughlin experienced a 10.6% decline, the paper reported. For the fiscal year, which ended in June, gaming tax collections were more than $651.8 million, an increase of 3.3% over fiscal 2010, the Review-Journal reported.

Still, the news isn’t propping up casino stocks today. MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM – News) is slumping 5% while Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN – News) is down 2%. Penn National Gaming (NASDAQ: PENN – News) is lower by 4% and Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD – News) is off 3%.