William Hill results impacted by disappointing retail

A William Hill trading update Tuesday revealed a 3 percent rise in group net revenue for the unaudited 17 weeks ending April 24, 2018.

Results were impacted by a poor retail performance but offset by strong online and U.S. business results.

Key performance indicators include:

Online net revenue up 12 percent.

Online net revenue from sportsbook was up 17 percent. Gross win margins were 1.3 percentage points higher at 8.8 percent leading to amounts wagered being down 8 percent.

Online gaming up 8 percent, supported by a strong increase in active customers and improved cross-sell rates. Total Online actives were up 10 percent.

Retail net revenue down 4 percent with a 9 percent decline in Sportsbook and flat gaming.  Sportsbook was negatively impacted largely by events in the Horseracing sector.

Significant year-on-year gross win margin increases driving unusual short-term trends.

Strong US performance driven by 17 percent growth (or 31 percent in local currency) in stakes and positive sports results.  Net revenue was up 45 percent (or 62 percent in local currency).  Gross win margin was up 1.5 percent to 7.7 percent.

Results from Basketball wagers led the pack during the March Madness competition, followed by increased wagering on ice hockey and the introduction of in-play tennis betting.

Mobile stakes rose 39 percent now contributing 64 percent of total wagers over the period.

Philip Bowcock, William Hill CEO, commented:

“William Hill has had a positive start to 2018, making further progress against our strategic priorities to grow UK market share, drive international revenues and deliver key transformation projects.

“Continued momentum in Online and strong growth in the US have driven a good performance during the period. In the UK, an unprecedented run of bookmaker-friendly sporting results led to unusual wagering and gaming trends, which we expect to normalise over time. The sale of our Australia business has further strengthened our balance sheet.

“While we await the outcome of the UK Triennial Review and the Supreme Court’s decision on US sports betting legislation, we remain focused on continuing to deliver a great customer experience, particularly ahead of this summer’s World Cup.”

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