Instant, lottery games drive OPAP revenue growth in H1

OPAP has praised the performance of both its lottery, and instant and passive, divisions after recording a year-on-year increase in revenue during the six months to June 30.

Gross gaming revenue in the first half amounted to €688.5m ($820.2m), which is up by 1.4% on the €678.8m posted in the corresponding period last year.

Net gaming period in the opening six months of the year also increased by 2.6% from €278m to €285m.

However, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped 19.1% year-on-year to €131m, with OPAP citing development expenses linked with new projects’ implementation in the second quarter as a key reason behind this decline.

Elsewhere, net profit was down 29% year-on-year to €61m, while earnings per share for the first half dropped 28.9% to €0.1916.

The first-half results come after OPAP reported a 2.5% decline in gross gaming revenue in the second quarter, while EBITDA, net profit and earnings per share also fell on a year-on-year basis in the period.

Damian Cope, chief executive of OPAP, said: “OPAP delivered a solid operational performance in Q2 2017 with revenues only slightly down on last year despite tough year-on-year comparables and the persisting macro-economic challenges in Greece, which continue to affect the disposable income of our customers.

“Under these circumstances OPAP’s overall performance is commendable.

“We continue to invest in new technology and people for the long-term benefit of OPAP and our customers; our portfolio of products is expanding and improving, and we are pleased by the performance of our new virtuals and VLT products, with SSBTs now also rolling out across our network.”

Cope added: “Our extensive plans to deliver on our 2020 Vision remain on track and we are confident in the OPAP team’s ability to deliver on its long-term objectives.

“Although there is still much to do in H2, we have had an encouraging start to Q3 and remain positive about OPAP’s growth prospects for the rest of 2017 and beyond.”

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