with the las vegas nevada based casino resort operator resorts international holdings . mgm resorts international formerly called grand name co. 1986 1987 mgm grand inc. 1987 2000 mgm mirage 2000 2010 type public traded as nyse mgm industry gaming hospitality tourism founded 1986 ; 30 years ago 1986 founder kirk kerkorian headquarters paradise nevada united states key people james j. murren chairman of the board ceo products casinos hotels entertainment resorts revenue 9.810 billion 2013 1 operating income 1.1 billion 2013 1 net income 3.114 billion 2013 1 total assets 26.1 billion 2013 1 total equity 7.9 billion 2013 1 owner paulson & co 9 % dubai world 9.5 % number of employees 61 396 december 2011 1 subsidiaries mgm resorts vacations mgm hakkasan diaoyutai mgm hospitality website www.mgmresorts.com mgm resorts international is a global hospitality and entertainment company operating destination resorts in las vegas mississippi new jersey and detroit including bellagio mgm grand mandalay bay and the mirage . the company is developing mgm national harbor in maryland and mgm springfield in massachusetts . it has a majority interest in mgm china holdings limited which owns the mgm macau resort and casino and is developing a gaming resort in cotai . mgm resorts owns 50 percent of citycenter in las vegas which features aria resort & casino . it has a majority controlling interest in mgm growth properties a real estate investment trust . 2 the company began operations in 1987 as mgm grand inc. and became mgm mirage in 2000 after acquiring mirage resorts . in the mid 2000s growth of its non gaming lodging food retail revenue began to outpace gaming receipts and demand for high rise condominiums was surging with median property prices in las vegas twice the national average . 3 4 the company shifted its focus from owning and operating resorts and casinos to developing and building real estate in the leisure and gaming industry launching the massive citycenter mixed use project 5 6 which was at the time of its construction the world s largest construction site and ranks as one of the most expensive real estate projects in history . 7 city center s development coincided with global financial crisis causing writedowns in its valuation . 8 in june 2010 the company changed to its present name to reflect its latest strategy of expanding worldwide including licensing its brand and expertise to develop non gaming hotels and residences . 9 10 11 billionaire investor kirk kerkorian and his tracinda corporation were until 2009 the majority shareholders of mgm mirage ; kerkorian was the former owner of the metro goldwyn mayer movie studio from which mgm grand derived its name . following a one billion dollar stock offering by mgm mirage amidst the global credit crunch tracinda s shares were diluted from 53.8 percent to 39 percent . 12 13 in may 2010 hedge fund paulson & co acquired 40 million shares about 9 % to become mgm resorts s second largest shareholder . 10 on june 15 2010 shareholders voted for mgm mirage to change its name to mgm resorts international which emphasizes the brand s global scope and increased non gaming strategy . 14 in 2013 mgm won state licenses to build a 1 billion resort in national harbor maryland 15 and an 800 million resort in downtown springfield massachusetts . 16 17 18 in may 2014 mgm broke ground on a 375 million arena on the las vegas strip with sports and entertainment company aeg . 19 mgm resorts is the majority owner of mgm growth properties llc nyse mgp a real estate investment trust that owns ten casino properties and leases them to mgm resorts . it became a separate publicly traded company in april 2016 . among the company s management ranks more than 38 percent are minorities and nearly 43 percent are women . 20 the company continues to receive wide recognition for its diversity and inclusion initiatives such as 40 best companies for diversity black enterprise magazine 21 top 10 companies for latinos diversityinc magazine 22 best places to work for lgbt equality human rights campaign foundation 23 top 10 regional companies diversityinc 24 top 100 companies for mba students universum global and top corporation for women s business enterprises women s business enterprise national council . 25 fortune magazine has named mgm resorts one of the world s most admired companies . 26 contents 1 history 1.1 background and early ventures 1969 1988 1.2 first casino developments 1989 1999 1.3 mirage resorts merger 2000 1.4 stalled developments 2001 2004 1.5 mandalay merger 2004 2005 1.6 later developments 2004 2006 1.7 dubai world investment 2007 2009 1.8 name change and recent years 2010 present 2 mgm hospitality 3 mgm resorts international properties 3.1 las vegas strip 3.2 other properties 3.3 golf courses 3.4 subsidiaries 3.5 former properties 4 staff and management 5 awards and recognition 6 references 7 external links history edit background and early ventures 1969 1988 edit the company s background can be traced to 1969 when airline and casino tycoon kirk kerkorian bought a controlling stake in the metro goldwyn mayer film studio . 27 in 1970 and 1971 kerkorian struggled with debt from his acquisitions of mgm and western airlines and was forced to sell a majority of his casino company international leisure to hilton hotels at a steep discount . 28 29 when the las vegas hilton the casino he had built subsequently became the most successful hotel in las vegas kerkorian was inspired to lead the studio into the gambling industry . 28 it opened the original mgm grand hotel and casino now bally s las vegas in 1973 . 30 the mgm grand reno followed in 1978 . 31 by 1979 the two hotel casinos accounted for most of mgm s income and the company announced a plan to split itself in two . 32 the next year the film studio was spun off as a new company while the original company renamed as mgm grand hotels inc. retained the two hotel casinos . 33 kerkorian held a 47 percent stake in both companies . 33 in 1985 kerkorian began seeking a buyer for mgm grand hotels to allow him to concentrate on running united artists and on developing new properties under the mgm grand name . 34 a deal was reached for bally manufacturing to buy the company ; the deal closed in april 1986 35 and the two casinos were renamed under the bally s brand . 36 the terms of the sale allowed kerkorian to retain rights to the mgm grand name and plans were announced to offer the stockholders of mgm grand hotels shares in a new company that would hold the naming rights . 37 the company now known as mgm resorts international was formed in 1986 as grand name co. 38 as a subsidiary of kerkorian s tracinda corporation . 39 it was renamed the following year as mgm grand inc. 38 the company s first venture was mgm grand air a luxury airline offering service between new york and los angeles which launched in september 1987 . 40 the company also made an offer to take over financially struggling pan american world airways but it was rejected by pan am s board in november 1987 for being too conditional . 41 in august 1987 mgm grand bid 152 million for the bankrupt dunes hotel in las vegas but was beat out by japanese billionaire masao nangaku . 42 instead the company acquired the desert inn and sands casinos in february 1988 from summa corporation for 167 million . 43 the sands was promptly sold to sheldon adelson s interface group for 110 million in april 1989 . 44 first casino developments 1989 1999 edit in september 1989 the company announced plans for a 700 million hollywood themed complex including a 4 000 room hotel and a theme park . 45 the desert inn site was initially considered as a location for the project 45 but within weeks the location was finalized as the marina hotel and casino and the tropicana country club 46 which mgm grand acquired for 93 million plus 30 million in stock . 47 the company put the desert inn up for sale to focus efforts on the new project 48 but found no outside bidders and agreed to sell it to tracinda for 130 million . 49 construction on the mgm grand las vegas and the mgm grand adventures theme park began in october 1991 50 and the property opened in december 1993 at a final cost of 1 billion . 51 the park permanently closed in 2002 due to a lack of interest . 52 the company moved its headquarters from beverly hills to las vegas in july 1992 . 53 during construction of the mgm grand the company acquired an option to buy an 18 acre site across the street from the project . 54 gary primm of primadonna resorts approached mgm president bob maxey in 1994 with an idea for the site a casino recreating the new york skyline . 55 a joint venture was formed between the two companies and construction began in march 1995 . 56 completed at a cost of 460 million the new york new york hotel and casino opened in january 1997 . 57 with new york new york under development mgm grand made moves to expand in several other markets . an exploratory agreement to develop two casinos on the chinese island of hainan was announced in august 1994 58 but came to nothing . in darwin australia a lucrative market attracting high rollers from pacific rim countries 59 the company considered building a hotel 60 but instead bought the diamond beach hotel and casino 61 renaming it as the mgm grand darwin . mgm announced plans for an atlantic city casino in july 1996 . 62 in michigan where voters approved casinos in november 1996 mgm made plans for a bid on one of the three available gaming licenses 63 which would eventually be approved and open in july 1999 as the mgm grand detroit . 64 in south africa with casino gambling newly authorized mgm announced plans in august 1996 to develop 15 properties in conjunction with tsogo sun . 65 the first a temporary casino in johannesburg s sundome opened in october 1998 . 66 three more casinos followed before mgm agreed to sell out its interest in the properties to tsogo sun in november 2001 . 67 since the initiation of new york new york analysts had speculated that mgm grand or primadonna would buy out the other s interest in the project . 68 instead of making such a cash intensive purchase 69 however mgm agreed to buy primadonna outright for 276 million in stock plus 336 million in assumed debt . 70 the merger closed in march 1999 71 giving mgm ownership of three casinos and two golf courses at the nevada california state line in addition to full control of new york new york . mirage resorts merger 2000 edit in february 2000 mgm grand made an unsolicited offer of 17 a share to buy mirage resorts which had foundered due to disappointing results at its new beau rivage and bellagio resorts . 72 analysts expected a protracted battle with mirage founder steve wynn seen as unwilling to give up control but under pressure from institutional investors . 73 74 mirage rejected the offer 75 but wynn met with kerkorian the next day and named a price of 21 a share . 76 the companies agreed on the higher price for a total of 4.4 billion plus 2 billion in assumed debt . 77 the merger closed in may 2000 78 giving mgm ownership of the mirage treasure island bellagio boardwalk and golden nugget casinos in las vegas the golden nugget in laughlin and the beau rivage in mississippi and a