William Hill Q2 Profits Up 15% To £117.9m

William Hill has released its Q2 2012 results revealing an impressive 11% rise in net revenue to £637.8 million, while pre-tax profit also soared 13% to  £143.3 million. After tax, the UK betting company reported a 15% increase in its profits to £117.9 million compared to £102.7m for the same period in 2011.
William Hill operates 2,370 betting shops in the UK, which also experienced a 5% growth in revenue to £417.4m. However, the company has a growing online and mobile presence, whose revenue soared 30% in Q2 to £198.4m with William Hill Online (WHO) now accounting for around one third of the group’s revenue compared to one quarter for the same period in 2011. According to CEO Ralph Topping, mobile wagering will continue to be a priority for the company and as he explains:
“The Olympics will be interesting as it’s the first one with mobile betting. Some are predicting that 10 per cent of bets will be through mobile – I think it will be [between] 15 and 20 per cent.”
Currently, 90% of William Hill’s business is UK derived but the company has continued to make huge strides internationally, with Ralph Topping adding: “We have made good progress in the period on our strategy in expanding internationally, including being awarded an online licence in Spain. It was also very pleasing to be awarded the Nevada licences in June and to complete the acquisition of the three land-based sports betting businesses.”
Following the solid Q2 financial results, William Hill’s shares rose 7.1% to 311.1p and have now risen by over 30% in the last six months alone giving the company a market capitalization of £2.21 billion. Looking ahead, Ralph Topping sounded an optimistic tone and commented:
“With further innovation to come, the Group is in good shape and the Board remains confident of its expectations for the full year.”