Operator News
Spain – Codere returns to profit as key markets surge
By Phil - 2 March 2018
Codere returned a net profit of €2.8m in 2017, while increasing revenues by six per cent to €1,638m, thanks to the good performance of the business in its main markets: Argentina, Spain, Italy and Mexico.
In Argentina the company reported revenues of €582.4m, marking a nine per cent increase. In Mexico, revenues stood at €339.9m, representing a 3.1 per cent increase, while in Italy revenues amounted to €335.8m, giving an increase of 4.4 per cent. At the same time revenues in Spain were up by 10.5 per cent and stood at €188.1m.
Adjusted EBITDA reached €273.6m in 2017 with a stable margin of around 17 per cent despite the increase in taxes in many of the markets where it operates including Argentina and Italy.
This year, according to the company, the new direction will focus on profitable growth and the creation of value for its shareholders, based on a consolidated presence in its markets. To this end, it aims to strengthen cost efficiency and promote the development of online activity.
Norman Sorensen Valdez, Non-Executive Chairman of Codere, said: “Our firm has enormous growth opportunities, which we want to capture in order to remain a benchmark in the gaming sector. We must take advantage of the changes that rapid demographic evolution implies and respond to their changing demand, without neglecting the fact that younger segments demand innovation and different attention and have different preferences both in online and in-person consumption.”
Vicente Di Loreto, CEO of the company, explained: “It is time to enhance the leadership of Codere in their current markets, and increase resources and efforts in online markets, enhancing the integration between the two and enriching the value proposition for our customers. Codere is a great organisation that has managed to be at the forefront in recent decades, our intention is to create value for customers, employees and shareholders, enhancing the experience we have to address new projects and take advantage of the growth opportunities that will surely arise.”
Adjusted EBITDA at the end of the fourth quarter of the year reached €73.6m a 11.7 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. The losses of 2016 were a result of the debt swap operation with which the financial restructuring of the company was completed.
In Latin America, the greatest increases were recorded in Brazil (78.1 per cent), Argentina (9 per cent), Uruguay (7.5 per cent) and Mexico (3.1 per cent). Revenues remained stable in Colombia and fell by four per cent in Panama.
