{"id":777038192,"date":"2026-02-19T07:55:41","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T10:55:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=777038192"},"modified":"2026-04-21T14:16:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T17:16:08","slug":"skycity-half-year-revenue-drops-2-4-as-carded-play-impacts-gaming-activity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/skycity-half-year-revenue-drops-2-4-as-carded-play-impacts-gaming-activity","title":{"rendered":"SkyCity half-year revenue drops as carded play impacts activity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Group revenue reached NZ$411.7m (US$255m).<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

New Zealand.- SkyCity Entertainment Group has reported a 2.4 per cent year-on-year decline in group revenue for the six months ended 31 December 2025. Group revenue was NZ$411.7m (US$255.3m), while underlying EBITDA declined 28 per cent to NZ$85.5m (US$53m). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gaming revenue was impacted by the introduction of mandatory carded play<\/a> across New Zealand casinos from July 2025, lower premium table volumes in Auckland and Adelaide and VIP customer churn. These pressures were partially offset by contributions from non-gaming segments, including food and beverage and hotel operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Operating costs increased compared to the prior period due to investment in AML capability, host responsibility initiatives and technology upgrades, particularly in Adelaide. The first half also included pre-opening costs related to the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC)<\/a>, which opened on February 11, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reported net profit after tax<\/strong> (NPAT) stood at NZ$12.1m (US$7.5m), with underlying NPAT at NZ$14.4m (US$8.9m). No dividend is expected to be paid for the period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jason Walbridge<\/strong>, chief executive officer, stated: \u201cThe first half of FY26 reflected a planned period of operational transition, with the Group focused on the second half of the year and ongoing work to support long-term operating objectives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added: \u201cWe are undertaking a disciplined review of our operating model to ensure our cost structures reflect the current environment, while maintaining our commitment to compliance and customer experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead, the operator said 2026 underlying EBITDA guidance remains unchanged. Earnings are expected to be weighted towards the second half of the year, supported by NZICC operations, non-gaming contributions and the absence of one-off costs incurred in H1.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\t\tSee also:<\/span><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tSee also:<\/span> Star Entertainment returns to positive EBITDA<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Group revenue reached NZ$411.7m (US$255m).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":226,"featured_media":8952,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"SkyCity Entertainment Group reported a 2.4% decline in H1 FY26 group revenue to NZ$411.7m and a 28% drop in underlying EBITDA, primarily due to the introduction of mandatory carded play, lower premium table volumes, and VIP customer churn. Increased operating costs for AML capability, host responsibility, and technology upgrades, alongside NZICC pre-opening expenses, further impacted profitability, leading to no dividend for the period. The operator anticipates a stronger H2, supported by NZICC operations and a disciplined review of its operating model.","focusai_entities":"SkyCity Entertainment Group, Jason Walbridge, Star Entertainment","focusai_location":"New Zealand, Auckland, Adelaide","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (1.0), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (1.0), operator_casino (1.0), tech_data (0.8), payments_fraud_aml (1.0), investor_analyst (1.0), journalist_researcher (1.0)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Operational Adjustments Impact","query":"What specific operational adjustments are being implemented to mitigate the impact of mandatory carded play and VIP churn on gaming revenue?"},{"label":"Cost Structure Review Details","query":"How will the cost structure review specifically address the increased operating expenses related to compliance and technology investments, and what is the projected timeline for these efficiencies?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[16336,163],"tags":[29,338,1137],"class_list":["post-777038192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-australasia-news","category-finance-news","tag-casino","tag-new-zealand","tag-skycity"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777038192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/226"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777038192"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777038192\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777038217,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777038192\/revisions\/777038217"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8952"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777038192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777038192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777038192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}