2. BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of Presentation. As permitted by the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) have been condensed or omitted. These consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s 2020 annual consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10‑K for the year ended December 31, 2020.

The interim consolidated financial statements of the Company included herein reflect all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) that are, in the opinion of management, necessary to present fairly the financial position and results of operations for the interim periods presented. The results of operations for the interim periods are not necessarily indicative of annualized results for an entire year.

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Full House and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Fair Value and the Fair Value Input Hierarchy. Fair value measurements affect the Company’s accounting for net assets acquired in acquisition transactions and certain financial assets and liabilities. Fair value measurements are also used in the Company’s periodic assessments of long-lived tangible and intangible assets for possible impairment, including for property and equipment, goodwill, and other intangible assets. Fair value is defined as the expected price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date.

GAAP categorizes the inputs used for fair value into a three-level hierarchy:

The Company utilizes Level 1 inputs when measuring the fair value of its 2028 Notes (see Note 5).

The Company utilizes Level 2 inputs when measuring the fair value of its asset purchases and acquisitions (see Note 4).

The Company utilizes Level 3 inputs when measuring the fair value of net assets acquired in business combination transactions, subsequent assessments for impairment, and most financial instruments, including but not limited to the estimated fair value of common stock warrants at issuance and for recurring changes in the related warrant liability (see Note 6).

Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash.  Cash equivalents include cash involved in operations and cash in excess of daily requirements that is invested in highly liquid, short-term investments with initial maturities of three months or less when purchased.

Restricted cash balances consist of funds initially totaling $180 million, which were placed into a construction reserve account to fund the completion of the Chamonix construction project.

Revenue Recognition of Accrued Club Points and Deferred Revenues

Accrued Club Points: Operating Revenues and Related Costs and Expenses. The Company’s revenues consist primarily of casino gaming, food and beverage, hotel, and other revenues (such as sports wagering, golf, RV park operations, and entertainment). The majority of the Company’s revenues are derived from casino gaming, principally slot machines.

Gaming revenue is the difference between gaming wins and losses, not the total amount wagered. The Company accounts for its gaming transactions on a portfolio basis as such wagers have similar characteristics and it would not be practical to view each wager on an individual basis.

The Company sometimes provides discretionary complimentary goods and services (“discretionary comps”). For these types of transactions, the Company allocates revenue to the department providing the complimentary goods or services based upon its estimated standalone selling price, offset by a reduction in casino revenues.

Many of the Company’s customers choose to earn points under its customer loyalty programs. As points are accrued, the Company defers a portion of its gaming revenue based on the estimated standalone value of loyalty points being earned by the customer. The standalone value of loyalty points is derived from the retail value of food, beverages, hotel rooms, and other goods or services for which such points may be redeemed. A liability related to these customer loyalty points is recorded, net of estimated breakage and other factors, until the customer redeems these points, primarily for “free casino play,” complimentary dining, or hotel stays. Such liabilities were approximately $0.7 million for March 31, 2021 and $0.8 million for December 31, 2020, and these amounts are included in “other accrued liabilities” on the consolidated balance sheets. Upon redemption, the related revenue is recognized at retail value within the department providing the goods or services.

Revenue for food and beverage, hotel, and other revenue transactions is typically the net amount collected from customers for such goods and services, plus the retail value of (i) discretionary comps and (ii) comps provided in return for redemption of loyalty points. The Company records such revenue as the good or service is transferred to the customer. Additionally, the Company may collect deposits in advance for future hotel reservations or entertainment, among other services, which represent obligations to the Company until the service is provided to the customer.

Deferred Revenues: Market Access Fees from Sports Wagering Agreements. In 2019, the Company entered into several agreements with various unaffiliated companies allowing for online/mobile sports wagering within Indiana and Colorado, as well as on-site sports wagering at Rising Star Casino Resort and at Bronco Billy’s Casino and Hotel (the “Sports Agreements”). The contracts differ as to the percentages of revenues that we receive.  Also, some contracts require payments in advance of the contract year, while others call for settlement in arrears. As part of these long-term Sports Agreements, the Company received $6 million in one-time market access fees, which were recorded as a long-term liability in the same amount and are being recognized as revenue ratably over the initial term length of each agreement of 10 years, beginning with the commencement of operations.

Indiana. Two of the Company’s Sports Agreements commenced operations in December 2019 and April 2021, respectively. The remaining Sports Agreement is expected to go live in the next few months.

Colorado. The Company’s three contracted mobile sports wagering websites commenced online operations in June 2020, December 2020 and April 2021.

Deferred revenues consisted of the following as discussed above:

 

Income Taxes. For interim income tax reporting for the three-months ended March 31, 2021, the Company estimates its annual effective tax rate and applies it to its year-to-date pretax income or loss.

Reclassifications. The Company made certain minor financial statement presentation reclassifications to prior-period amounts to conform to the current-period presentation. Such reclassifications had no effect on the previously reported results of operations or financial position.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share. Earnings (loss) per share is net income (loss) applicable to common stock divided by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share reflects additional dilutive effects for all potentially-dilutive securities, including share-based awards outstanding under the Company’s stock compensation plan and warrants, using the treasury stock method.

Leases. The Company determines if a contract is or contains a lease at inception or modification of the agreement. A contract is or contains a lease if there are identified assets and the right to control the use of an identified asset is conveyed for a period of time in exchange for consideration. Control over the use of the identified asset means that the lessee has both the right to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from the use of the asset and the right to direct the use of the asset. 

For material leases with terms greater than a year, the Company records right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet, as measured on a discounted basis. For finance leases, the Company recognizes interest expense associated with the lease liability and depreciation expense associated with the ROU asset; for operating leases, the Company recognizes straight-line rent expense.

The Company does not recognize ROU assets or lease liabilities for leases with a term of 12 months or less. However, costs related to short-term leases with terms greater than one month, which the Company deems material, are disclosed as a component of lease expenses when applicable. Additionally, the Company accounts for new and existing leases containing both lease and non-lease components (“embedded leases”) together as a single lease component by asset class for gaming-related equipment; therefore, the Company does not allocate contract consideration to the separate lease and non-lease components based on their relative standalone prices.

Finance and operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized based on the present value of future minimum lease payments over the expected lease term at commencement. As the implicit rate is not determinable in most of the Company’s leases, management uses the Company’s incremental borrowing rate as estimated by third-party valuation specialists in determining the present value of future payments based on the information available at the commencement date and/or modification date. The expected lease terms include options to extend the lease when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise such options. Lease expense for minimum lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the expected lease term for operating leases. For finance leases, the ROU asset depreciates on a straight-line basis over the shorter of the lease term or useful life of the ROU asset and the lease liability accretes interest based on the interest method using the discount rate determined at lease commencement.

 

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

 

Income Taxes. In December 2019, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2019-12,  “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes” (“ASU 2019-12”). This standard simplifies the accounting for income taxes and includes removal of certain exceptions to the general principles of ASC 740, Income Taxes, and updates and simplifies certain areas of the codification. ASU 2019-12 was effective for the Company beginning on January 1, 2021, but did not have a material impact on its financial statements upon adoption.

 

The Company believes that there are no other recently-issued accounting standards not yet effective that are currently likely to have a material impact on its financial statements.