Southeastern Connecticut’s two casinos have long paid out between 91 and 92 cents of every dollar wagered at their slot machines, meaning they’ve “won,” or held, the other eight to nine cents.

It turns out that’s more than casinos in a lot of other states can say.

According to a study published this month, U.S. slot hold percentages — the share of wagers a casino keeps for itself — increased 14.5 percent from 2004 to 2014, a period in which slot revenue increased only 1.1 percent.

During the decade, the combined hold percentage at Foxwoods Resort Casino and Mohegan Sun increased by a mere two-tenths of a percentage point, from 8.15 to 8.17 percent, the study commissioned by the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers found. At the same time, the Connecticut casinos’ slot revenue declined 35 percent.

In Rhode Island, Twin River Casino in Lincoln and the Newport Grand slots parlor increased their overall slot hold percentage from 7.80 percent to 9.16 percent, which may have had something to do with a 43.6 percent increase in the state's slot revenue. 

The report notes that in the decade, 10 out of 12 states that publish gaming data reported increases in slot hold percentages and that seven of the 12 reported declines in slot revenue.

"While economic conditions appear to be a material factor in slot performance trends, there may be other factors impacting the industry's overall performance, most notably following the conclusion of the most recent recession,” the report concluded. "Consumer spending has improved in most major gaming markets throughout the United States in recent years, while gaming volumes continue to contract."

The data suggest that instead of boosting slot revenue, increasing hold percentages “very well may be contributing to its decline,” the report said.

Of the states included in the study, Iowa had the highest hold, 9.37 percent; Nevada, at 6.4 percent, the lowest. New Jersey slot revenue fell 47.3 percent from 2004 to 2014, the biggest decline of any state.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com

Twitter: @bjhallenbeck