James Stewart, CEO of MGM Growth Properties LLC (NYSE: MGP), participated in a video interview at Nareit’s REITworld: 2019 Annual Conference in Los Angeles.
Stewart said the potential for real estate transaction volume within the gaming industry could ultimately reach $50 billion and expand to “north of $100 billion” if the leisure industry is included. “I’m really confident about the runway we have for growth,” he said.
Turning to the recent joint venture formed between MGM Resorts and Blackstone to acquire the Bellagio real estate assets, Stewart said it is significant because “it represents the first time the public has had any insight into the institutional interest in the gaming space. The multiple Blackstone paid to get into the space was the highest ever paid for any gaming asset.”
Stewart added that the transaction “shines a light on the asset quality of the space and our own assets, which I think will prove to be very beneficial.”
Meanwhile, Stewart said the gaming sector is “in the first half of the first inning” in terms of institutionalization. “But it’s coming,” he added.