Great 2012 For WIlliam Hill
Thursday May 9,2013 : 2012 A MILESTONE YEAR FOR WILLIAM HILL PLC
Chairman pays tribute to management…and says that Ralph Topping will remain in charge
William Hill plc chairman Gareth Davis, speaking the gambling group's agm Thursday, paid tribute to the company management, which he said had delivered another milestone year….and he had good news for investors; the popular and successful chief executive of the company, Ralph Topping, has agreed to remain in charge until at least 2015.
The Group delivered a strong performance last year, with revenues up 12 percent, operating profit up 20 percent and the full-year dividend per share up 17 percent.
The company also successfully pursued an aggressive expansion program, acquiring Sportingbet Australia and taking full control of William Hill Online after a long partnership with Playtech in the venture. Consequently, the company entered the FTSE100 on May 1 2013.
Davis said that Topping had indicated to the Board that he was prepared to continue as CEO until at least the end of 2015.
"At the time of announcing in June 2011 that we would be retaining Ralph’s services until at least the end of 2013, I indicated the critical importance of keeping him in the business given his extensive experience over 43 years with William Hill," Davis said.
"I am delighted he plans to stay longer as I believe he remains uniquely qualified to lead the Group through this on-going transformational period, particularly to maximise the opportunities in Australia and in digital.
“The Board is delighted that Ralph will remain with the Group for the coming years as we continue to manage the succession planning for the chief executive role. Our preference is always to look internally first for candidates and we are developing a cadre of talented senior management. At the same time, we are continuing to scan the external market to ensure we have the widest range of options open to us at the appropriate time."
Topping himself commented: "I am very pleased by the progress we have made at William Hill over the last five years and the value we have generated for shareholders. We now have significant opportunities to transform this business, with more of our revenues and profits than ever before coming from online, from mobile and from international territories."
