Caesars Entertainment, Inc.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by. At this time, all participants are leaving only mode. After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. If you would like to ask questions during that session, you want to press star 1 on your telephone. If you require any further assistance, please press star 0. I would now like to hand the conference over to Speaker Bay. Ms. Joyce, you may begin.

Thank you. Good afternoon and welcome to the Caesars Entertainment Corporation's first quarter 2020 earnings conference call. Joining me today from Caesars Entertainment are Tony Rodeo, Chief Executive Officer, and Eric Keshin, Chief Financial Officer. A copy of the press release, earnings presentation slides, and a replay of this conference call are available in the Investor Relations section of our website at caesars.com. Also, please note that prior to this call, we furnished a copy of the earnings release to the SEC and on Form 8K, and we'll file our Form 10Q shortly. Before we get underway, I would like to remind you that today's conference call will contain forward-looking statements that we are making under the Safe Harbor provisions of federal securities laws. The company's actual results could differ materially from the anticipated results in those forward-looking statements. In addition, we may discuss non-GAAP measures. Please refer to slides 17 through 22, which include forward-looking statements State Harbor disclaimers and definitions of certain non-GAAP measures and slides 11 and 12, which include tables reconciling GAAP and non-GAAP figures. I will now turn the call over to Tony.

Thanks, Joyce. And actually, before I start on my formal comments, I think it's worth noting me and Eric are sitting here in the conference room at Caesars Pals, and we are over six feet apart. But being in Caesars Palace, which usually has so much activity and energy, it's kind of eerie, and hopefully in the not-too-distant future we'll be beginning to move back to normal. With that said, first and foremost, all of us at Caesars hope that you and your loved ones are healthy and safe. The public health emergency caused by COVID-19 has created challenging circumstances that are impacting all aspects of society. Before I provide commentary on the steps we're taking to protect our business and to prepare to reopen when appropriate, I'd like to express my gratitude to all of our team members who are on the front lines of our efforts to quickly and safely implement the closure of all our casino properties in March, consistent with stay-at-home orders and other directives from various government and tribal bodies. I'd also like to thank those who remain on the job to keep our properties safe and secure while closed. I know the implementation of these directives have placed extraordinary strain on all of our people. Throughout this period, our focus centered around the health and safety of our employees and guests. We began temporarily closing our properties in North America on March 14th, and by March 17th, we had shut down almost all of our properties in North America and internationally, consistent with government or tribe-mandated directives. The challenges we now face are uncertainty around when our properties will be able to resume operations, what that will look like, and how consumers will react once we reopen, as well as preserving liquidity as best we can. In the meantime, we're taking steps to prepare for reopening at the appropriate time and to strengthen our financial position. Given the unprecedented scale and scope of this public health emergency, we can't reliably predict when consumers will be ready to return to our properties, though we believe our deep connection with our guests and our geographic diversity positions us as well as possible. We're working closely with regulators and government and tribe officials to ensure our operations, upon reopening, follow their directors. We're also consulting with health experts regarding the implementation of policies and procedures that align with recommendations published by public health officials. In an effort to strengthen the company's financial position and enhance our ability to recover when we do reopen, we made the extremely difficult but necessary decision to temporarily reduce our workforce to a smaller, targeted workforce on maintaining basic operations. We have furloughed approximately 90% of employees at our domestic-owned properties as well as at corporate, and we look forward to welcoming them back at the appropriate time. In the interim, we've taken steps to support our team members, including paying impacted employees for the first two weeks of the closure period and enabling them to use their available paid time off after that, as well as paying 100% of their medical insurance premiums through the earlier of June 30th and their return to work. Furloughed team members will also have government assistance available to them as a financial bridge until they do return to work. Additionally, an employee assistance fund, Caesars Cares, has been established to support team members at our domestic properties who suffer unanticipated hardships arising from COVID-19. The fund, which is run by an independent public charity and managed by a three-person board, includes two independent directors and a Caesars representative. is composed of donations from CSER's Board of Directors, executive team members, and other employees, as well as partners and vendors. During these extraordinary times, we are committed to continue to support local communities where we operate by donating perishable items to food banks and charities and providing critical supplies to first responders. To date, CSER has supplied hundreds of thousands of pounds of food, as well as thousands of gloves, masks, and bottles of hand sanitizer to those on the front line. Additionally, we have contributed cots, hundreds of bed linens, pillows, and hygiene kits to various homeless shelters and care facilities. Based on the company's ongoing efforts to address COVID-19-related needs in the communities where we operate, donations made by the Caesars Foundation will support local charities in these communities engaged in fighting this public health emergency. We continue to seek ways to give back as part of our commitment to get through this together. We have been communicating regularly with our customers during this challenging period, including working hard to alleviate the concerns of Caesars Reward members about the program by ensuring the benefits they receive are protected. We've also worked closely with our broad family of talent, including entertainers, chefs, and our own bartenders to provide entertainment and recipes and other information to people while they are at home. As we think about the path toward reopening, we will make decisions in collaboration with local governments, tribal authorities, gaming regulators, and health experts, among others, with the health and safety of our employees, guests, and community in mind. We will ensure that our operations are in compliance with applicable government directives and tribal mandates. While we don't know the duration or the severity of the economic downturn stemming from this public health emergency, we recognize that a recovery will take time. We will be thoughtful and responsible in terms of how we bring the business back. In locations with multiple properties, we plan to phase openings in line with demand and our contractual commitments. We are designing and implementing policies and procedures in consultation with an infectious disease specialist that align with recommendations from the US CDC and local public health officials to guide the reopening of our currently closed facilities as well as ongoing maintenance of guest areas and team member work areas. As you would expect, our health and safety initiatives include, among other things, An increased frequency of cleaning and sanitizing of public spaces and guest rooms. More frequent hand washing by team members. Requiring team members to wear masks while at work. Implementing social distancing in areas where there are lines and in gaming areas, including limiting table game spots and slot machines. Additionally, non-gaming offerings including entertainment. Restaurants and bars will likely be reopened on a phased basis with limited capacity in line with consumer demand and guidance from public health authorities. You can find further details on our health and safety approach in the announcement we put out today. Before I turn the call over to Eric, I'd like to briefly comment on a couple of business updates. A few weeks ago, we and VG Properties announced the sale of Valley's Atlantic City to Twin Rivers Worldwide Holdings for approximately $25 million in cash. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions. Valley's Atlantic City will continue to be part of the Caesars Award Network until closing. Following the sale, we will continue to operate Caesars Atlantic City, which will include the Wild Wild West Casino and Sportsbook operation, and Howard's Atlantic City. Last one, in terms of our pending merger with Eldorado, we remain focused on closing the transaction. Now, I'll turn the call over to Eric to review the financial details of the quarter.