Gaming drives Playtech H1 revenues up 18%
Supplier also announces it will return 150m to shareholders through a special dividend
Playtech will return 150m to shareholders via a special dividend after a strong performance from its gaming division helped drive an 18% year-on-year rise in H1 revenues.
The supplier recorded 337.7m in revenues for the six months ended 30 June, up from 286m in H1 2015, as revenues from its flagship gaming arm increased 11% to 306.4m.
The growth in gaming was driven by a 19% rise in casino revenues, up from 148.8m last year to 177m in H1 2016, while services and sport revenues also increased 3% and 10% respectively.
Casino more than offset an 11% fall in bingo and a 16% decline in poker, with the growth attributed to a strong performance from mobile casino after revenues more than doubled compared to H1 2015.
Meanwhile, the London-listed firm’s financials division reported a 194% rise in revenues to 31.3m but made an EBITDA contribution of just 5.9m.
The strong financial results and high cash balances led the supplier to announce today it would return 150m to shareholders through a special dividend and increase its interim dividend by 15% to 0.11 per share.
Playtech chairman, Alan Jackson, said the company had made “significant progress” during the six-month period and highlighted the strength of its gaming arm.
“The gaming division continues to deliver strong growth, driven by our industry-leading casino offering. We are âlocked-in’ future growth with important new licensees signed and significant contracts renewed.
“Seven of our top 10 licensees are now on contracts which have at least three years remaining and our pipeline of new licensees and structured agreements remains strong.”
M&A also formed a key part of Playtech’s growth strategy this year. The firm recently completed a deal to buy 90% of Best Gaming Technology just weeks after completing a £38m acquisition of Quickspin.
Playtech’s share price was up 3.84% to 934p on the London Stock Exchange at the time of writing.