William Hill prefers independence for now

Last year hasn’t been overly successful for William Hill, but in 2017 the tide appears to have turned and the operator is happy to remain independent for now.

Revenue rising

For 2016 William Hill was forced to adjust the operating profit down by 1%, which many observers took as a sign for the operator being in crisis. Shareholders certainly weren’t happy, but promises and efforts were made for William Hill to get back on track.

Overall it can’t be said that the company did badly, though. In fact, their adjusted profit before tax was still at $146.1 million, which marked a 2% year-on-year boost.

Philip Bowcock, CEO of William Hill, said: “Profits were broadly flat but given the tough comparator from last year’s [UEFA European Championship] that we’re running into, that result was at the top end of analysts’ expectations.”

But for the first six month of 2017 a different picture emerged. Net revenues for the first half of the year have risen by 3% year-on-year and currently stand at $1.1 billion. Bowcock was certainly happy with the numbers: “I don’t know what other results are going to be like but I can look at what we’ve released today and I’m confident those results are going to stand up well in the wider marketplace.”

Independence preferred

Given the consolidation of major online gambling brands we’ve seen over the last two years, William Hill still remains independent for the time being. Amaya International (now rebranded as The Stars Group Incorporated) made an attempt to take over William Hill last year, but the offer was rejected.

Bowcock comments: “I think as long as we deliver results in line with this, there’s not a necessity to do any transaction.”

Whether or not industry pressure and competition will change this stance remains to be seen. After the consolidation of Ladbrokes and Gala Coral, Betfair and Paddy Power and GVC’s takeover of bwin.party, William Hill has certainly something to think about.

Bowcock concedes: “However, like any business in any sector, if an opportunity arises we’ll look at it on its merits and make a decision to ensure we’re delivering shareholder value.”

So, the discussion is not entirely off the table, but it would depend on a likely offer. Until then William Hill remains independent and aims to deliver the best possible results, not just for shareholders, but for customers as well.

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