Ameristar Casinos

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Ameristar Casinos, Inc.

Type of Company	Public
Founded	1954
Headquarters	Las Vegas, Nevada
Key people	Craig H. Nielsen, President/CEO
Industry	Gaming and hospitality
Revenue	$854,698,000 USD (2004)
Employees	7,000
Website	www.ameristarcasinos.com

Ameristar Casinos, Inc. NASDAQ: ASCA is a Las Vegas, Nevada based casino operator. Ameristar is known for making eye catching annual reports.

Despite having its headquarters in Las Vegas, Ameristar has not owned or operated a Las Vegas area casino since selling the Reserve Hotel Casino (now Fiesta Henderson) to Station Casinos Inc. in 2001.

[edit] History

Ameristar Casinos was formed in Jackpot, Nevada, as Cactus Petes Desert Lodge in 1954 and incorporated in 1956. Cactus Petes, Inc. took over management of the neighboring Horseshu Club in 1964. Cactus Petes came under the partial control of Ray Neilsen of Twin Falls, Idaho, in 1967. Nielsen's construction company had built many of the structures at Cactus Petes. Neilsen's son Craig assumed control of day-to-day operations upon the elder Nielsen's death in 1971. Craig Nielsen became sole owner in 1984, remaining as CEO until his unexpected death on 20 November 2006. President John Boushy will succeed Nielsen as CEO. ^[1]

In 1992 the company made its first investment outside Jackpot by securing ownership in a Vicksburg, Mississippi, property known as Delta Pointe. This property was opened in 1994 as Ameristar Casino Vicksburg. Ameristar opened the first of several riverboat casinos in Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 1996. In 1998 the Reserve Hotel Casino opened in Henderson, Nevada.

The company was renamed Ameristar Casinos, Inc. and went public in 1993. Company headquarters was moved from Twin Falls to Las Vegas in 1996.

The company built and operated The Reserve Hotel and Casino in Henderson, Nevada. It was later sold to Station Casinos which rename it to Fiesta Henderson.

In 2004 Ameristar was one of the first companies to help fund research at the Nevada Cancer Institute by making a $500,000 donation.

The 2004 Annual Report cover, looking and reading like an entertainment magazine, featured a female in a bath tub covered in casino chips.