Paddy Power’s pre-tax profits up 21pc

Paddy Power’s Strong Financial Performance

Paddy Power has reported a 21pc increase in pre-tax profits to €68.7m for the first half of the year, despite what it said were some adverse sports results since its May trading update.

The company said net revenue grew by 29pc to €311m in constant currency, with double-digit growth in every division. The total amount staked by customers was €2,741m during the period.

And it noted that four new online ventures had been established with start-up losses of €6.3m in the period.

In online, Paddy Power said there was accelerated growth in scale, new customers and new business investment. Online customer acquisition was up 50pc, active customers increased 41pc to 1.2m, net revenue up 41pc to €191m and operating profit up 7pc to €48.5m, said the company.

Impressive Expansion in Australia, Italy and UK: Paddy Power’s Success Story

There was particularly significant growth in Australia following investment last year: customer acquisition was up 73pc, online active customers increased by 37pc, stakes were up 24pc and net revenue up 42pc in constant currency.  Operating profit up 35pc to €13.2m.

Mobile net revenue, meanwhile, was up 239pc in constant currency to €53m with 54pc of active sportsbook customers transacting via mobile in June.

The company reported successful entry into the Italian online market in May achieving a 4pc share of the online sports betting market in the first full month of operation.

The company’s UK retail business saw like-for-like sportsbook stakes up 12pc and machine gaming net revenue up 5pc in constant currency.  Operating profit grew by 61pc to €7.6m, with 23 shops opened in the year to date.

In Ireland, retail operating profit grew by 79pc to €9m, driven by the normalisation of sports results.  Like-for-like stakes were down 3pc.

Paddy Power’s Strong First Half and Future Prospects

“This has been a very strong first half for Paddy Power,” said Patrick Kennedy, chief executive, Paddy Power plc. “Revenue growth in our existing businesses has accelerated with a 29pc increase and each of the divisions achieving double digit growth.

“We strongly promoted our brand, products and money-back specials during Euro 2012.  This contributed to a 50pc increase in online customer acquisition for the half year.  We’ve also been busy on the development front with sustained investment, a successful launch into the Italian online market and three further new revenue streams set to contribute in the second half of the year.

“With our online and retail divisions both continuing to deliver substantial growth and our expansion plans progressing, we are confident in the group’s prospects for the rest of the year and beyond.”

The board has decided to pay an interim dividend of 39c per share, a 30pc increase compared to last year.

Grainne Rothery