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:
| Â |
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 |
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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
Investor Relations:
Frank Hoffmann, Investor Relations Manager
+44 (0) 20 3739 7123
Notes to Editor:
- ZEAL is an international group of companies reinventing the world of lottery.
- Specialising in the online lottery space, the company was founded in 1999 as Tipp24 SE and renamed as ZEAL Network SE in 2014.
- The company is based in London, and its shares are listed on the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
- 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.
- ZEAL's Q3 report can be accessed at:
- Total Operating Performance is calculated as the sum of Revenue and Other Operating Income as disclosed in the Interim Consolidated Income Statement.
- ZEAL Group includes all subsidiaries of ZEAL Network SE and the affiliated companies of the independent shareholding myLotto24 Ltd.
