Key highlights
- Playtech’s H1 revenue hits a five-year high of €859.6m
- Meanwhile, its adjusted EBITDA rose 10% compared to H1 2022
- However, Playtech’s profit fell by 96% as a result of its Hard Rock investment
- At the time of writing, the company’s market cap sits at £1.66bn
For H1 2023, Playtech’s revenue increased by 8% year-on-year to €859.6m ($920.9m). Breaking this down, the company made €334.5m from its B2B division, a 7% rise from H1 2022. Meanwhile, from its B2C operations, Playtech’s revenue hit €532.1m – up from the €487.3m it made for the same period last year.
The graph below shows Playtech’s overall revenue in H1 since 2019 and how it has recovered from the Covid-19 impact of 2020 & 2021 to record its highest revenue since the pandemic.
Moving on to Playtech’s adjusted EBITDA from continuing operations, for H1 2023, the company made €219.9m – a 10% rise on H1 2022’s €199.1m.
Since 2019, Playtech’s adjusted EBITDA has fallen before bouncing back (much like revenue) as a result of Covid. For H1 2019, the company recorded a sum of €190.6m, which fell to €162.3m in H1 2020 and again to €124.1m in H1 2021.
However, despite the rises seen in EBITDA and revenue year-on-year, Playtech’s H1 2023 post-tax profit dropped by 96% to €3.1m, with H1 2022 recording a €71.4m sum. This is down to the €79.8m investment it made in Hard Rock Digital during H1 2023, which was in exchange for a minority ownership stake in the company.
“We have started the second half of the year well and are on track to deliver FY23 adjusted EBITDA slightly ahead of current expectations” – Mor Weizer, Playtech CEO
In 2021, the company still posted an adjusted post-tax profit of €54.6m, while in H1 2020 it showcased a €44.3m adjusted profit figure.
Meanwhile, Playtech’s net debt for H1 2023 decreased by 50% annually, now totalling €248.2m. This figure is down significantly on the company’s recorded net debt in 2021 when it stood at €677.9m, and in 2020 when it sat at €522.6m.
For the year so far, Playtech has seen its share price rise and fall unpredictably, with it starting on January 3 at £5.36 ($6.69) and hit a high on May 17 at £6.34 – and a low of £5.08 on 28 March. At the time of writing, its share price sits at £5.35, with a market capitalisation of £1.65bn.
Mor Weizer, Playtech CEO, said of the results: “Our success in the period was driven by our diversified portfolio, spanning B2B and B2C, in some of the fastest-growing regulated markets around the world.
"Having laid the groundwork in the US, we are growing our offering across multiple states and are confident in our future prospects following the landmark agreement with Hard Rock Digital.”
