Rank Group to pay dividend after full-year net gaming revenue rises 9%

The group achieved profits of £44.7m.

UK.- Rank Group Plc has announced a dividend payment after its return to profitability in its last financial year. It said all units saw growth in the 12 months ending June 30, with net gaming revenue up 9 per cent at £734m. Like-for-like underlying profits doubled to £46.5m, beating the market consensus, while profits totalled £22m and £22.7m in H1 and H2 respectively. 

The LSE-listed gambling group reported that revenue from its land-based Grosvenor Casino and Mecca Bingo venues was up 8 per cent year-on-year at £508m. Grosvenor saw a 9 per cent increase in customer visits, which offset a 1 per cent decline in spend per visit. Meanwhile, Mecca Bingo net gaming revenue was up 8 per cent on the back of a 2 per cent increase in visitors and a 6 per cent rise in average spend per visit. Some 44 per cent of Mecca’s 187,000 new customers were aged under 35.

Rank Digital revenue came in at £226m, up 12 per cent year-on-year. That comes in a year that saw the launch of the in-house app for Grosvenor and the build of a central engagement platform for UK brands.

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Group CEO John O’Reilly said: “This has been a year of strong financial, operational, and strategic progress for Rank. We are continuing to rebuild profitability following the impact of lockdowns and the material inflationary pressures experienced in recent years. Trading continues to improve due to ongoing investment in our people, our products, and the facilities within our venues businesses, and the continued development of the proprietary technology which is driving the growth of our digital business.”

He added: “We have started the new financial year as we finished the previous one, with good momentum across all businesses. With inflation receding, disposable incomes improving, investment continuing to be made in the customer proposition, and a strong pipeline of growth initiatives underway, we are confident in the future prospects of the Group.

“We are well-positioned to take advantage of the much-needed land-based reforms, which will help to further modernise our casino and bingo propositions to better meet the expectations of today’s customers, and we look forward to the government confirming the timetable for the required secondary legislation. It would not be possible to deliver this improved performance without our excellent colleagues who continue to excite, entertain and protect their customers, support their local communities, and contribute fully to the progress we are continuing to make.”