Betsson AB released its second quarter 2011 financials
Tuesday July 26,2011 : Rapid growth in internet usage will drive the strong development of the online gaming market
Swedish gaming services company Betsson AB released its second quarter 2011 financials this week, with mixed results but overall a steady performance.
The company is of the opinion that the online gaming market will continue to develop strongly due to the rapid growth in internet users and the accompanying confidence in using the internet in e-commerce and other transactions.
Betsson has exceeded H2 Gambling Capital's projected growth of the European internet gaming market of 15.2 percent during 2011 with its current strategies supporting similar growth into the future, said a company spokesperson.
Key Performance indicators for the period include:
– Revenues of SEK 338.2 million (Q2/2010: SEK 366.1 million) with an operating margin of 30.4 percent (Q2/2010: 24.0 percent)
– Growth in Game win in all of Betsson's gaming solutions (including B2B collaborations) amounted to 24 percent
– Operating income amounted to SEK 102.7 million (Q2/2010: 88.0 million), equivalent to an increase of 17 percent
Income has been negatively impacted by acquisition-related expenses for Betsafe amounting to SEK 10.1 million. Adjusted for this amount, operating income increased by 28 percent
– Income before tax amounted to SEK 103.3 (88.5) million
– Net income totaled SEK 97.9 million (Q2/2010: 84.0 million) million, corresponding to SEK 2.47 (Q2/2010: SEK 2.14) per share
– Gross turnover in Live betting in Sportsbook, in all of Betsson's gaming solutions, amounted to SEK 1,199.5 (Q2/2010: 699.7 million), representing an increase of 71 percent compared with the previous year's strong second quarter
– The acquisition of Betsafe was completed during the quarter and the integration of the company is continuing according to plan
Key Performance Indicators for Online Operations over the Q2/2011 period are:
Betsson’s subsidiary on Malta offers Internet gaming to end customers via partner co-operation and its own gaming portals betsson.com, betsafe.com, casinoeuro.com and cherrycasino.com.
Casino:
– Gross profit in Casino during the second quarter amounted to SEK 202.0 (Q2/2010: SEK 173.8 million), which represented 73 percent (Q2/2010: 60 percent) of the Group’s total gross profit.
Sportsbook : "The underlying activity in Sportsbook has never been higher":
– Gross profit in Sportsbook during the second quarter amounted to SEK 41.3 million (Q2/2010: SEK 78.0 million). Gross profit includes SEK 34.9 (-) million regarding license revenues from B2B.
– Sportsbook’s share of the Group’s gross profit amounted to 15 percent (Q2/2010: 27 percent).
– Gross turnover in Sportsbook, in all of Betsson’s gaming solutions, amounted to SEK 1,805.0 (Q2/2010: 1,233.1 million), which is equivalent to an increase of 46 percent compared with the strong second quarter during the previous year, during which the FIFA World Cup was held.
– Gross turnover in Live betting in Sportsbook including all of Betsson’s gaming solutions amounted to SEK 1,199.5 (Q2/2010: SEK 699.7 million), equivalent to an increase of 71 percent.
– The gross margin after free bets in B2C in Sportsbook amounted to 5.3 percent (Q2/2010: 7.4 percent). Usual seasonal patterns and particularly successful customers are attributed to the relatively lower gross margin.
Poker:
While poker has long shown negative development, recent developments in the segment, known in the USA as Black Friday, and the repercussions of these developments have had a positive impact on the company's Poker level of activity.
– Gross profit in the quarter amounted to SEK 17.1 million (Q2/2010: SEK 25.3 million).
Other Products:
– Gross profit in other products amounted to SEK 15.2 million (Q2/2010: 14.6 million during the second quarter, equivalent to 5 percent (Q2/2010: 5 percent) of the Group’s total gross profit.
Magnus Silvferberg, President and CEO of Betsson commented: "In conjunction with the acquisition of the rapidly-growing Betsafe, the customer segment B2C has been strengthened and has grown by 18 percent in the core market, the Nordic countries.
"For a considerable time, Betsson has been successful within B2B and is now well-positioned, both technically and business wise, for growth within B2B and B2C."
