Pinnacle Entertainment names Anthony Sanfilippo as CEO

Pinnacle Entertainment turned to a longtime former Harrah's Entertainment executive to become the regional casino operator's new chief executive officer.

The Las Vegas-based company on Monday named Anthony Sanfilippo as president and CEO, ending a nearly 5-month-long search.

Sanfilippo, 51, replaces interim CEO John Giovenco, who will continue to serve on Pinnacle's board of directors.

Sanfilippo, who was also named to Pinnacle's board, spent more than 25 years with Harrah's where he was president of the company's central and western divisions. He oversaw operations of more than two dozen casinos in markets where Pinnacle now operates resorts. Sanfilippo also served as president of Harrah's New Orleans.

Since June 2008, Sanfilippo has been the CEO of Multimedia Games, a gaming equipment provider.

'With Pinnacle, the key will be what Mr. Sanfilippo chooses to do with the capital expenditure plans," Janney Montgomery Scott gaming analyst Brian McGill told investors. "The former CEO was always looking to build additional properties, rather than run the company for free cash flow. The major difference Mr. Sanfilippo could bring to the company comes in terms of long-term direction."

Earlier this month, the regional casino operator opened a $380 million suburban St. Louis casino and struck a deal to close an older riverboat casino that operates in downtown St. Louis near the company's Lumiere Place resort.

"Sanfilippo's experience in running regional gaming operations at Harrah's, his reputation as a cost-cutter, and his ability to turn around a company make him a great fit at Pinnacle," Macquarie Securities gaming analyst Joel Simkins said.

Pinnacle announced that Sanfilippo is purchasing 125,000 shares of the company's common stock at $8.64 per share, which was the closing price Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

"A majority of his compensation is linked to Pinnacle's future performance," the company said in a statement.

Several analysts noted that Sanfilippo's purchase of some $1 million worth of Pinnacle stock means he has "a decent amount of skin in the game."

In a company statement, Sanfilippo said he would focus on the company's near-term growth.

"Our priority will be to fully leverage the portfolio of quality regional gaming properties that Pinnacle possesses with a commitment to offering a world-class guest experience in order to capture increasing share of this demand," Sanfilippo said.

Pinnacle had been without a permanent CEO since the November departure of Dan Lee, who also served as the company's board chairman. Lee resigned following a public dispute with a St. Louis elected official.

During Giovenco's interim term, the company scaled back some of its development plans, morphing a planned second casino in Lake Charles, La., into an expansion of an existing resort, and placing a casino site on the Atlantic City Boardwalk on the market after scrapping a proposed $3 billion development project.

Roth Capital Markets gaming analyst Todd Eilers, who follows Multimedia Games, said Sanfilippo helped reposition the gaming equipment provider, which had posted negative cash flow in the years before he arrived.

"We are disappointed to see Mr. Sanfilippo leave as we believe he did an outstanding job at fixing the company," Eilers said.

Pinnacle also named Richard Goeglein as the company's permanent board chairman. He had held the position on an interim basis since November.

Contact reporter Howard Stutz at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871.