888 Holdings PLC on Friday said first-quarter revenue declined but topped expectations, ahead of a possible name change for the William Hill owner.
888 Holdings is a Gibraltar-headquartered sports betting and gambling company, which owns brands including 888casino and William Hill.
The gambling firm said first quarter revenue topped guidance slightly, despite a small decline in the UK & Ireland online segment.
It reported first-quarter revenue of £431 million, down 3.2% on-year but ahead of the £420 million to £430 million it had predicted.
888 noted that revenue was up, however, by 2% from the fourth quarter of 2023. It explained that this reflects ‘a continuation of positive sequential quarter-on-quarter trends.’
UK & Ireland online revenue alone fell 1% due to ‘reduced sports venues and increased customer investment across the Cheltenham Festival in comparison to last year’, which a 4% growth in gaming could not offset.
For the UK & Ireland, 888 said that revenue is expected to return to on-year growth in the second quarter of 2023, ‘driven by strong customer engagement, new product launches, and the annualization of safer gambling changes.’
888 also gave shareholders a strategy update on Friday.
The company, which had set out a ‘value creation plan’ last month, said shareholders will get a vote on its possible name change to Evoke PLC at its annual general meeting in May.
It explained that the new name will better reflect its ‘one company’ approach.
‘Having lapped various regulatory and compliance changes during the quarter, and with increased marketing investment supported by an exciting product pipeline, we remain confident in a return to growth from Q2 2024,’ said Chief Executive Per Widerstrom.
‘I was delighted to outline our multi-year value creation plan alongside our full year results in March, and am pleased to report a strong quarter of progress against these plans. We are moving decisively and at pace to position our company for long-term success, and I look forward to providing further updates about our progress in the coming months.’
Shares in 888 were up 2.7% at 81.94 pence each in London on Friday morning.
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