CEO Pay Soared at MGM, Las Vegas Sands, and Wynn Resorts

10.04.2024 - 21:17 / skift.com / Sean Oneill / Wynn Al-Marjan / Wynn Macau / Wynn Resorts

MGM Resorts CEO and president William Hornbuckle made around $38 million in pay in 2023, more than the CEOs of rival casino resort operators Wynn Resorts and Las Vegas Sands, as detailed in recent SEC filings.

Hornbuckle received a larger pay package last year than he did in the previous few years because most of his compensation was tied to the performance of the company’s stock. MGM Resorts’s share price rose 31% last year.

Here’s a look at the take-home pay of the executives steering three of the largest casino resort operators in 2023. (Caesars Entertainment isn’t expected to report its compensation numbers until near the end of this month.)

Skift used the “compensation actually paid” figure that companies reported to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This measure captures how much executives’ equity awards changed in value as paper gains and losses.

Hornbuckle’s compensation actually paid last year was $38 million, which was the most he has received since he became CEO in 2020. His second-best year for compensation was in 2021 when he earned around $29.1 million.

Last year, Hornbuckle had a base salary of $2 million. Most of his additional financial windfall came via awards for achieving performance goals.

MGM Resorts enjoyed a glittering performance last year. It notched an all-time record for full-year net revenue, partly supported by record performance at the group’s Las Vegas Strip resorts — including during November when Las Vegas hosted the Formula 1 Grand Prix.

MGM Resorts also signed a licensing and loyalty deal with Marriott International to create the “MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy,” a set of 16 resorts that will let guests earn points in both MGM Resorts’ and Marriott’s loyalty programs.

Craig Billings earned around $17.4 million in pay last year. His base salary was around $1.9 million. The rest of his compensation came primarily from awards tied to performance goals, mainly for Wynn Resorts’ gaming business.

In the U.S., the group owns a few resorts, including Wynn Las Vegas and Encore Las Vegas in Nevada, and Encore Boston Harbor in Massachusetts. In Macau, China, properties include Wynn Macau, Encore at Wynn Macau, and Wynn Palace. The company is developing Wynn Al Marjan Island in the UAE, and has proposed a new project in New York City.

Las Vegas Sands CEO Rob Goldstein made around $12.5 million last year.

“We believe the compensation actually paid to our named executive officers in 2023 is justified as a result of successfully executing a significant recovery in both our Singapore and Macao businesses, with Singapore exceeding 2019 results and Macao EBITDA being 70% of 2019 results,” the company said in an annual proxy filing.

The company’s flagship property in