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Ladbrokes gets off to a flier in first quarter

Thu, 21st Apr 2016 07:05

(ShareCast News) - Unlike some of its rivals, Ladbrokes got off to a flier in the first quarter, with encouraging sales growth indicating new chief executive Jim Mullen's turnaround plan is working but also helped by a tailwind of favourable sporting results.As the bookmaker refurbished 73 betting shops under the first phase of its UK retail transformation, group net revenue jumped 10.6% in the three months to 31 March compared to the same period last year, with UK retail net revenue rising 4.1% and digital revenue fizzing up 36.5%.UK retail revenue was driven higher despite over-the-counter (OTC) stakes being broadly flat compared to the same period last year driven by good football staking growth and self-service betting terminals (SSBTs), counterbalanced by the worst Cheltenham festival "in living memory".In the first full quarter of the enlarged SSBTs estate, which is now the UK's largest, the amounts taken by the terminals increased 172.5% year-on-year.Net revenue from fixed-odds betting machines grew 1.1%, or 2.9% on a like-for-like basis, benefitting from the introduction and promotion of lower-staking slots and B3 content.The impressive digital result was thanks to a 59% growth in sports book net revenue, with amounts staked up 35% and continuing growth in active users by another 27% and gaming ahead by 27%.Mullen said it was an encouraging start to the year and that he saw "plenty of evidence that indicates our plan is working but we are still early in our turnaround strategy and our priority remains on continued growth in our recreational customer base".He admitted results throughout the first few weeks were largely in the company's favour and customer metrics have continued to be strong, as part of his strategy to bring in more recreational customers and reinforce the status as "the nation's favourite bookmaker". "Our focus remains on best in class customer service, superior quality of product and maximising the multi-channel potential of our business. We continue to be pleased by the reaction to our increased marketing, our products and multi-channel proposition."Interestingly, Mullen noted that at Cheltenham there was such intense competition that offers and pricing were at levels which the company believed "abandoned bookmaking principles".Looking forward, Ladbrokes still has a liability of roughly £3m should Leicester City win the Premier League and the upcoming European Championships brings the potential for a rather more predictable early stages due to the expanded format.Furthermore, the examination of the Coral merger will see results from the Competition and Markets Authority in mid-May, with possible remedies to be announced.Analysts at Canaccord said they expect the CMA will push for 400 to 450 store sales or closures, though this still "leaves a compelling strategic rationale for the deal"."Ladbrokes is in the early stages of a transformational journey," they added, keeping their full year forecasts unchanged at this stage. "Historical operational weakness has made for some easier targets, but momentum now looks encouraging, with strong progress across all key KPIs."Broker Shore Capital also said it would keep full year pre-tax profit forecasts unchanged at £64m, with earnings per share of 5.3p, but that the trading update underpinned a base case for the shares' standalone fair value of circa 100p, with rumours around increased Belgian VAT that could be worth roughly 5p per share."Going forward, the investment case revolves around the proposed merger with Coral," ShoreCap said. "If successful [...] the stock could be worth circa 180p with the current price suggesting that the market is implying a circa 25% probability of success. We would suggest it's worth at least 50/50."Ladbrokes' shares were up 4% to 120.9p just after 1000 BST on Thursday, still short of March's six-month high of close to 140p.

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Ladbrokes-Coral merger wins final CMA approval with 322 shop disposals

(ShareCast News) - Ladbrokes and Coral will be able to complete their merger "in the very near future" after the competition regulator gave its final approval on Wednesday. After the Competition & Markets Authority gave its green light, the FTSE 250 bookmaker said it had approved the disposal of

21 Oct 2016 14:38

Daisy pulls sterling junk bond as investors get tough

By Robert Smith LONDON, Oct 21 (IFR) - Daisy called off an attempt to issue a sterling high-yield deal on Friday, in the latest sign of waning UK investor appetite for riskier debt in challenging sectors. The UK company threw in the towel on the debut bond after four days of marketing

18 Oct 2016 17:12

UPDATE 4-William Hill, Amaya drop short-lived gambling merger talks

* Talks abandoned less than two weeks after announcement * Sector consolidating as more gamblers go online * European rivals have already joined forces * Amaya FY revenue forecast below market expectations * Amaya shares drop 8.3 percent (Adds share move, Amaya spokesman

18 Oct 2016 13:24

RPT-UPDATE 3-William Hill, Amaya drop short-lived gambling merger talks

(Repeats for wider distribution, no changes to text) * Talks abandoned less than two weeks after announcement * Sector is consolidating as more gamblers go online * European rivals have already joined forces * Amaya FY revenue forecast below market expectations * Ama

18 Oct 2016 08:28

Ladbrokes revenue grows for fourth successive quarter

(ShareCast News) - FTSE 250 betting and gambling company Ladbrokes reported growth for a fourth successive quarter for revenue as it remains confident of delivering full year results in line with expectations. In a trading update for the third quarter ended 30 September, net revenue increased 12.1%,

18 Oct 2016 06:56

Tuesday newspaper round-up: Bonds, Shell, bookmaker levy, farm boost

(ShareCast News) - Investors dumped UK government bonds yesterday in one of the heaviest sell-offs since the Brexit vote as international demand for sterling assets declined rapidly. Overseas investors are becoming increasingly worried that inflation and a move by the Conservative government towards

17 Oct 2016 07:13

Ladbrokes and Coral announce planned sale of 359 shops

(ShareCast News) - Bookmaker Ladbrokes announced on Monday that subsidiaries of both itself and merger partner Gala Coral Group have agreed to sell a total of 359 licensed betting offices to Done Brothers Cash Betting - trading as Betfred - and StanJames Abingdon - trading as Stan James. The FTSE 25

17 Oct 2016 06:58

Monday newspaper round-up: New Brexit plans, dividends, supermarkets

(ShareCast News) - Britain would continue to pay billions of pounds into the EU budget after Brexit to maintain cherished single-market access for the City of London and other sectors under plans being discussed by Theresa May's cabinet. The prime minister's demand that Britain controls its borders

17 Oct 2016 06:20

Ladbrokes, Gala Coral to sell 359 shops ahead of merger

LONDON, Oct 17 (Reuters) - British Ladbrokes and Gala Coral said they agreed to sell 359 shops for 55.5 million pounds ($69 million) to rivals, in a deal which will reduce their footprint and pave the way for competition authorities to allow their merger to proceed. The pair were told in Ju

10 Oct 2016 07:49

BUZZ-William Hill: best day in 3 months after confirming merger talks

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7 Oct 2016 07:39

BUZZ-UK gambling companies lower after media reports of TV ad ban

** Shares in British gambling companies fall after The Times newspaper reports that the companies are due to be banned from advertising on television during the day ** William Hill down 2.9 pct, Labrokes down 2.5 pct vs. Britain's midcap index which is up 0.2 pct ** Cenkos analyst Sim

20 Sep 2016 06:57

Tuesday newspaper round-up: May in New York, Ladbrokes, building blocked

(ShareCast News) - Theresa May will canvass leading Wall Street banks over how Britain should structure its departure from the EU to reassure them that Brexit will not damage their UK business. Mrs May will meet "mostly" chief executives from the finance sector along with figures from the technology

31 Aug 2016 07:51

Gala Coral revenue up but losses widen

(ShareCast News) - Ladbrokes said on Wednesday that revenue at Gala Coral, with which it has agreed to merge, rose in the third quarter, but the bookmaker's loss widened due to exceptional costs. In the 12 weeks ended 2 July, net revenue at Gala Coral was up 10% from 2015 to £264m, while earnings be

26 Aug 2016 08:46

Ladbrokes given a boost by Berenberg upgrade

(ShareCast News) - Berenberg has raised its rating on Ladbrokes to 'buy' from 'hold' and lifted its target price to 185p from 130p, saying the company is its second favourite stock in gaming after Playtech. The broker said since it initiated on Ladbrokes a number of positives have materialised with

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