Key points
● Total revenue of €317.1m (2013: €342.5m) reflecting shift from 'volume to value', a soft international poker market and the loss of €11.9m of revenue from Greece following the closure of that market, partially mitigated by a positive FIFA World Cup; nationally regulated and/or taxed markets represented 56% of total revenue (2013: 52%)
● Gross gaming revenue through mobile/touch grew by 125% to €67.4m (2013: €30.0m) with strong growth across all verticals
● Planned cost reductions of €30m* this year remain on-track with savings of €13.8m achieved in H1
● Clean EBITDA~ of €46.4m (2013: €60.7m) has reduced primarily due to €7.3m of operating losses in New Jersey, reduced domain sales and the loss of Greece;
● Non-cash impairment charge of €94.7m (2013: nil) against poker-related and certain other intangible assets resulted in a €94.0m loss after tax (2013: loss of €11.6m)
● Clean EPS~ of 3.0 € cents per share (2013: 4.3 € cents)
● Current trading: in the 8 weeks to 25 August 2014 average daily net revenue was down 4% versus the same period in 2013 due to a later start to the European football leagues; in the same period nationally regulated and/or taxed markets were up 2% versus the same period in 2013
● Major new programme to increase our commercial focus, speed of decision-making and execution that is expected to both drive revenue growth in key markets and deliver further annualised savings of at least €15m in 2015, in addition to the €30m already identified and to be delivered in 2014
● Recommended half year dividend up 5% to 1.89 pence per share (2013: 1.80 pence)
