Aristocrat shares surge on stronger North America and ANZ demand
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
More news: Shares in Aristocrat climbed in afternoon trade after the gaming giant reported a year-on-year increase in its EBITDA and net profit driven by strong demand in North America and ANZ.
Shares rose 12.15% to $51.42 at 2:16pm AEST.
Aristocrat posts 9.1% increase in half-year profit, expands share buyback
The news: Aristocrat has reported a 5.6% year-on-year increase in its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $1.31 billion for the six months to 31 March driven by market share gains in its gaming division, alongside the continued expansion of its gaming operations’ installed base.
The numbers: For the half year, total segment revenue was 0.2% lower at $3.02 billion compared to a year ago, while net profit after tax rose 9.1% to $794 million.
Operating cashflow reached $820.1 million, a 6.1% year-on-year increase. Earnings per share were 117.9 cents, up from 105.6 cents a year ago.
The company increased its interim dividend to 50 cents a share and expanded its on-market share buyback program by $1 billion, bringing the total to $2.5 billion through May next year.
The context: Aristocrat stated that the first-half results were driven by strong sales in North America and ANZ, alongside the outperformance of its social casino franchises and higher direct to consumer sales. The company also saw ongoing organic growth in its iLottery gaming.
The source: ASX
