Greece’s OPAP reports revenue growth in Q1
The gambling monopoly from Greece reported an increase in revenue and profitability during the first three months of 2018.
Greece.- OPAP, the leading gambling operator from Greece, announced its consolidated financial results for the period ended March 31st. Betting and video lottery terminals contributed to the year-on-year financial growth for the gambling monopoly during the three month period.
Gross gaming revenues (GGR) were higher by 5.1 per cent at €377.3 million, an increase from the €358.9 million totalled during the same period a previous year, due to increased VLTs contribution and meaningful betting growth. Gross Profit from gaming operations stands at €147.9 million, higher by 4.9 per cent year-on-year when compared to the €141 million registered during Q1 2017 and in line with revenue run rate.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 11.1 per cent to €87.2 million versus the €78.5 million in Q1 2017, on the back of efficient cost control across all the company’s operations and despite the ongoing implementation of the IT transformation project and the concurrent rollout of VLTs, SSBTs & online development.
Moreover, net profit in the first quarter of the year rises €39.9 million, increased by 20 per cent when compared to the €33.2 million in the first three months of 2017, due to increased operational profitability and lower corporate taxation year-on-year.
Damian Cope, CEO of OPAP, commented: “Q1 was a strong quarter and demonstrated good growth in both revenues and profitability, as OPAP benefited from many of the investments made in 2017. Both our Betting and VLT categories performed well and the new relationship with our agents also helped to realise tangible improvements.
“We continue to invest in the optimisation and modernisation of our retail estate network, with several hundred new OPAP stores opening during 2018. Our comprehensive technology transformation programme is also approaching the final phase as we plan for the completion of all our main retail platform migrations, plus our new online platform, by the end of Q3.”
“The rollout of our new products, notably VLTs and SSBTs, continues at pace and is helping to build a more balanced product portfolio. However, externally we still see that the macroeconomic challenges in Greece continue to affect the disposable income of our many loyal customers. Looking ahead, we have a particularly busy few months in front of us, including the World Cup in Russia next month, and the OPAP team remains focused on meeting our objectives within the delivery of our 2020 Vision,” said Cope.
