UK bookmaker Ladbrokes warned today (Thursday) that its full-year financial results for its online operations would be well below expectations.
Ladbrokes, which brought forward its trading update from October, said that its digital business would post full-year operating profit of between £10 million (€11.9 million/$16 million) this year in comparison with a market forecast of £27.5 million.
By 10am this morning, Ladbrokes’ share price had fallen by nearly 8%.
“Our digital earnings have been disappointing reflecting a lack of competitiveness in sportsbook, lower margins than planned and a greater disruptive impact than expected from the transition necessary to grow digital for the long term,” Ladbrokes chief executive officer Richard Glynn said.
In August, the company revealed that it had posted pre-tax profit of £55.1 million for the first six months of 2013 – a 49% year-on-year drop. Overall group operating profit fell by almost 20% to £85.7 million.
In April, Ladbrokes warned that it expected operating profit to fall this year following poor results in horseracing and online gaming in the first quarter.
