William Hill saw revenues and profits shoot up in H1 2012 as they continued to laud the performance of their online venture. The group as a whole saw net revenue rise 11 percent to £627.8 million with William Hill Online (WHO) performing a star turn with net revenue of £198.4 million – an increase of 30 percent. The company also increased its share of the market thanks to “innovation and investment” in their online product. It all meant an online operating profit of £68.9m – up 23 percent – and a very happy Captain Birds Eye.
“We have seen a strong performance in our multi-channel UK business in the first half, with a good performance from both OTC and machines in Retail, and with our focus on innovation and investment continuing to deliver outstanding growth at William Hill Online,” said Ralph Topping. “Mobile remains a top priority and continues to outperform our expectations. The William Hill Sportsbook app, which has been top-ranked since its launch in the Apple App Store in mid-February, has delivered more than 40,000 new customers. Our rapidly growing mobile business increased to 22% of our Online sports betting turnover and 11% of gaming net revenue in the first half.”
For the company as a whole operating profit increased by 14 percent to £150.3 million. It followed a good period for the firm after staking volumes for Euro 2012 rose 61 percent compared with the same tournament in 2008. It gave them a gross win for the tournament across both online and retail of £10.2 million or 11.3 percent.
International expansion is something the firm has been pressing on with and Topping called it an “important strategic step” for William Hill as they look to build their presence abroad. He added: “With further innovation to come, the Group is in good shape and the Board remains confident of its expectations for the full year.”
The best news of the day for Hills though is the stock market likes what it sees with shares up 4.68 percent at the time of writing so they’re now worth 304p exactly – the first time they’ve been above 300p in the past year.
