Umsatz niedriger als im 1. HJ 2013, trotzdem 5% mehr Dividende
Norbert Teufelberger, Chief Executive Officer, said:
“Trading during the first half of 2014 was mixed with a solid performance from sports betting more than offset by year-on-year declines in casino and poker, particularly in countries that were no longer a core area of focus. We are on-track with our current cost saving measures, however it is clear that a more fundamental approach is needed to turnaround our commercial and operational performance. This requires a major change: we are simplifying our structure to accelerate the execution of our plans to drive revenue growth, increase our focus on customers in nationally regulated and/or taxed markets, and further reduce infrastructure costs. This new approach will also allow us to consider alternative financing and corporate structures in order to create additional value. We are confident that the steps we are taking will underpin our financial performance and remain confident about the full year outlook.”
Key points
Total revenue of €317.1m (2013: €342.5m) reflecting shift from ‘volume to value’, a soft international poker market and the loss of €11.9m of revenue from Greece following the closure of that market, partially mitigated by a positive FIFA World Cup; nationally regulated and/or taxed markets represented 56% of total revenue (2013: 52%)
Gross gaming revenue through mobile/touch grew by 125% to €67.4m (2013: €30.0m) with strong growth across all verticals
Planned cost reductions of €30m* this year remain on-track with savings of €13.8m achieved in H1
Clean EBITDA~ of €46.4m (2013: €60.7m) has reduced primarily due to €7.3m of operating losses in New Jersey, reduced domain sales and the loss of Greece;
Non-cash impairment charge of €94.7m (2013: nil) against poker-related and certain other intangible assets resulted in a €94.0m loss after tax (2013: loss of €11.6m)
Clean EPS~ of 3.0 € cents per share (2013: 4.3 € cents)
Current trading: in the 8 weeks to 25 August 2014 average daily net revenue was down 4% versus the same period in 2013 due to a later start to the European football leagues; in the same period nationally regulated and/or taxed markets were up 2% versus the same period in 2013
Major new programme to increase our commercial focus, speed of decision-making and execution that is expected to both drive revenue growth in key markets and deliver further annualised savings of at least €15m in 2015, in addition to the €30m already identified and to be delivered in 2014
Recommended half year dividend up 5% to 1.89 pence per share (2013: 1.80 pence)
Financial highlights