BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- MGM Grand Inc., hit by increased fuel prices and lower winnings at its casino, reported Tuesday a fourth- quarter loss of $12.7 million, off from earnings of $1.5 million, or 7 cents a share, for the year-ago quarter.
Fourth-quarter revenues for the company, which owns Desert Inn Hotel in Las Vegas and the luxury airline MGM Grand Air, were $42.4 million, up from $40.5 million.
The company said hotel/casino operations incurred a loss due to the reduced win percentage and an increased reserve for casino receivables. The airline's increases in passengers were offset by higher expenses, mainly from higher fuel prices.
For 1990, the company lost $23.6 million, off from earnings of $27.4 million in 1989. Revenues for 1990 were $141.9 million, off from $162 million for 1989.
MGM Grand, which is controlled by long-time Las Vegas financier Kirk Kerkorian, also disclosed Tuesday that it is proceeding with the development of the $700 million MGM Grand Hotel and Theme Park in Las Vegas. The project, first announced in September 1989, calls for a 5, 000-room hotel and film-oriented amusement park.
The company said ground-breaking will occur later this year and that construction will be completed in two years. Executives had originally said the project might be open by late 1992.
The project will be built on the site of the Tropicana Country Club and the Marina Hotel, both which were closed last November.
The company also put the 821-room Desert Inn, which includes a casino and an 18-hole golf course, up for sale last August.
Kerkorian is expected to finance the construction of the MGM Grand project through his share of the proceeds from the $1.36 billion sale of MGM/UA Communications last November to Italian financier Giancarlo Parretti. Kerkorian controlled about 80 percent of the MGM/UA stock.
