Why it’s lights out at ASX-listed Star Casino until further notice

It’s been a euphoric start to the week’s trading for the S&P/aSX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and most ASX shares this Monday. After touching a new record high late last week, the ASX 200 is at it again today, climbing over 8,000 points for the first time ever.

But let’s talk about the Star Entertainment Group Ltd (ASX: SGR) share price.

Star might be an ASX 200 share. But it is not enjoying the same kind of goodwill that most of its fellow stocks are this Monday. While the ASX 200 might be up by around 0.9% at the time of writing, Star shares have gone the other way.

At present, this casino operator and gaming stock has crashed by a painful 2.9%, down to 45.5 cents a share.

This will no doubt come as a bitter blow for Star’s embattled investors. Until today, the casino operator was on a bit of a run, rising more than 8.5% between 4 July and last Friday.

So what has ruined Star’s share price recovery so decisively this week?

Why is the Star share price crashing on the ASX today?

Well, today’s market-bucking slump is likely a consequence of the ASX announcement from Star early this morning before market open.

This filing revealed that Star has a number of planned upgrades to its gaming systems that have “been “disrupted due to system performance issues”. The casino operator planned the upgrades to prepare for the introduction of cashless gaming.

The issues were reportedly discovered “in post-upgrade testing”, prompting all electronic gaming machines and electronic table games in The Star’s three properties to be switched off on 13 July 2024 from 10pm “until the issue is resolved”.

Here’s more of what Star had to say about this disruption:

The decision was taken by The Star to ensure compliance with relevant regulations, and to maintain the Company’s commitment to safer gambling procedures.

The Star is working closely with its external provider Konami to address the operational issues as soon as possible and will provide an update once operations return to normal.

Treasury Brisbane, The Star Gold Coast and The Star Sydney remain open with table games, restaurants, bars and entertainment available.

So it’s clear why investors are passing over Star shares on the ASX today. Despite the euphoric mood of the broader market.

Star weathers yet another setback

This news was arguably the last thing Star investors wanted to wake up to today. The company has endured a series of scandals and setbacks over the past few years. These include investigations into its ability to hold gaming licenses in Sydney and high turnover at its top levels.

These setbacks helped make Star one of the ASX 200’s worst-performing shares in FY2024. The company shed 54% of its value over the 12 months to 30 June.

Star shares have also crashed more than 85% from where they were five years ago.

Check all of that out for yourself below:

Investors will no doubt hope that this latest company problem will be resolved quickly and that Star’s electronic gaming machines and tables will be back online soon. But we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

The post Why it’s lights out at ASX-listed Star Casino until further notice appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Is it time to buy FY24’s worst-performing ASX shares?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.