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ZEAL Network SE (-)
ZEAL delivers strong third quarter performance
01-Nov-2018 / 08:03 CET/CEST
Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement, transmitted by EQS Group.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
_1 November 2018_
*ZEAL delivers strong third quarter performance *
- Billings growth of 5% to EUR 212.4 million; with an 8% increase vs Q3
2017
- Total Operating Performance increased 17% to EUR 114.1 million
- Significant increase in EBIT to EUR 29.1 million
ZEAL Group, the world's leading lottery innovator, today announced strong
results for the first nine months of 2018.
Billings for the Group grew 5% to EUR 212.4 million year-on-year (2017: EUR
201.7 million), and by 8% for the third quarter versus 2017. This was driven
in the quarter by higher average jackpots in core products compared to the
previous year, and strong performance in Instant Win Games and US lotteries.
The increased billings, fewer exceptional prize payouts and a focus on
higher margin products during the quarter resulted in a 17% improvement in
Total Operating Performance to EUR 114.1 million (2017: EUR 97.6 million).
With costs flat for the period, the Group delivered a significant uplift in
Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) for the period to EUR 29.1 million
(2017: EUR 12.5 million), with the third quarter's EUR 12.7 million EBIT
outperforming expectations.
On a normalised basis - which highlights the Group's underlying performance
- revenues were up 8% and EBIT up 26% year-on-year.
ZEAL delivered a record number of new registered customers for the Group and
its partners at a significantly lower cost per acquisition. The 418,000
acquired represent an uplift of 54% year-on-year (2017: 272,000). Average
Billings Per User in the lottery betting segment were broadly maintained at
EUR 56.58 (2017: EUR 57.00).
*Jonas Mattsson, Chief Financial Officer, ZEAL Group said:*_'ZEAL has
delivered a strong set of results for the first 9 months of this year. Our
record number of new customers, the favourable jackpot environment and
continued growth in traditionally non-core products have all combined to
deliver promising topline growth, a good underlying performance, and very
strong EBIT. These results reflect the continued high demand for our
products and set us up well for the final quarter of the year.' _
*Helmut Becker, Chief Executive Officer, ZEAL Group, said: '*We continue to
deliver strong profitable growth; focusing firmly on controlling costs while
also improving customer acquisition and activity. In our core business,
customer numbers, billings and revenues are all significantly up, while our
acquisition costs per customer have halved. This is the result of the
optimisations and investments we have continued to make. With positive
performance also coming through from our start-ups in Norway and the UK,
ZEAL is excellently positioned to capitalise on the global lottery sector's
growth potential.'
*Selected financial results to 30 September 2018**:*
*2018* *2017*
*Billings* EUR 212.4 million EUR 201.7 million
*Revenue* EUR 111.2 million EUR 93.8 million
*TOP* EUR 114.1 million EUR 97.6 million
*EBIT* EUR 29.1 million EUR 12.5 million
*Earnings per share* EUR 2.39 EUR 1.04
*2018 Outlook remains unchanged*
For 2018, ZEAL Group expects to deliver EBIT in the range of EUR 33 million
- EUR 43 million, and Total Operating Performance (TOP) of EUR 150 million -
EUR 160 million. ZEAL Group expects to pay a dividend of at least EUR 1.00
per share in 2018, subject to financial performance.
*- ENDS -*
*Contacts:*
_Media Relations:_
Matt Drage, Head of Corporate Communications
+44 (0) 7976 872 861
matt.drage@zeal-network.co.uk
_Investor Relations:_
Frank Hoffmann, Investor Relations Manager
+44 (0) 20 3739 7123
frank.hoffmann@zeal-network.co.uk [1]
*Notes to Editor*:
1) ZEAL is an international group of companies reinventing the world of
lottery.
2) Specialising in the online lottery space, the company was founded in
1999 as Tipp24 SE and renamed as ZEAL Network SE in 2014.
3) The company is based in London, and its shares are listed on the Prime
Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
4) The Group has more than 3.5 million customers globally. Since its
incorporation, ZEAL Group has generated stakes of more than EUR 3.6
billion, paid out more than EUR 1.5 billion in winnings, and has helped
generate more than EUR 800 million for good causes and the State.
5) ZEAL's Q3 report can be accessed at:
http://www.zeal-network.co.uk/investors/publications/ [2]
6) Total Operating Performance is calculated as the sum of Revenue and
Other Operating Income as disclosed in the Interim Consolidated Income
Statement.
7) ZEAL Group includes all subsidiaries of ZEAL Network SE and the
affiliated companies of the independent shareholding myLotto24 Ltd.
ISIN: GB00BHD66J44
Category Code: QRT
TIDM: -
LEI Code: 391200EIRBXU4TUMMQ46
Sequence No.: 6398
EQS News ID: 740321
End of Announcement EQS News Service
1: mailto:frank.hoffman@zeal-network.co.uk
2: https://link.cockpit.eqs.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=ff31510ef05c26acf2beb9b2365a9c49&application_id=740321&site_id=vwd&application_name=news
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 01, 2018 03:04 ET (07:04 GMT)
