Mobile growth drives record Unibet revenues
Growth in Nordic and Belgian markets also helps operator achieve 16% year-on-year revenue increase " mobile becomes "fastest-growing" channel
Unibet posted record revenues and EBITDA for the first quarter of 2013, with CEO Henrik Tjärnström crediting growth from mobile and regulated European markets for the success.
The Swedish-listed operator achieved gross winnings revenue of £59.3m in Q1 2013 compared to £51.1m in the corresponding period last year, a 16% increase. EBITDA for the quarter rose 11.8% year-on-year from £15.3m last year to £17.1m.
Mobile provided 16% of the company’s gross winnings revenue with Tjärnström telling analysts in a call this morning the channel is “currently the fastest-growing for us”.
“We have been investing in mobile for the last year in a half and we have one of the best products in the market. Mobile is continuing to grow fast and we expect that to continue,” he added.
However Unibet’s gross margin on sports betting was down on Q1 2012 by 2.6%, although its revenues for Q1 2013 did increase year-on-year from £24.4m to £26.3m. Tjärnström said the Nordic markets were a “strong driver” for the operator’s growth, with 54% of Unibet’s revenues coming from the region. “We are re-focusing on our core markets and the Nordics are a part of that. They are growing quicker than the average market is growing and we are taking market share, not losing it,” he said.
What Tjärnström described as “re-regulated” markets in Europe contributed more than 26% of the operator’s gross winnings revenue, with active customers in Belgium up 80% year-on-year and a high investment in marketing “making it possible to really differentiate from smaller operators”. “All re-regulated markets delivered improved results compared to the fourth quarter of 2012 and the locally regulated markets combined made a significant positive EBITDA contribution,” he said.
Tjärnström claimed Unibet’s performance in France increasing its market share as other operators (with 888 being the most recent) hand back their licences. Western Europe provided 33% of Unibet’s overall revenues.
The CEO also spoke optimistically about the 45% equity stake it acquired in Bonza Gaming in March, arguing the acquisition was “testament to use being at the forefront of development”.
“It is a very good opportunity to strengthen our experience on social channels like Facebook and strengthen our relationship with them for other channels,” he said.
He added Unibet’s B2B sports betting division Kambi offered a good opportunity for growth as most of the deals agreed so far, were with companies “growing from low levels”. The majority of partners, with Spanish pools operator Suertia Interactive the most recent to sign up, had little online activity before partnering with the subsidiary.
Unibet’s profits for this year’s first quarter remained relatively flat, with profit after tax down from £10.8m to £10.6m, while earnings per share (EPS) decreased from 38.1p to 37.8p.
The company’s active customers increased significantly by the end of the quarter, rising 21% rise from 403,788 to 489,923 year-on-year.