Paddy Power Betfair profits double in Q1 2017

r a series of bookmaker-friendly results Paddy Power Betfair has posted impressive first quarter results, mainly attributed to its successful sportsbook division.

In the three months ending 31 March, the company posted figures showing that its underlying profits jumped by 114% to £91m from £42m the year prior.

Furthermore, the FTSE 100 betting group reported a 23% year-on-year increase in revenue to $416m from £339m due to bookie-favourable sporting results.

Paddy Power Betfair‘s impressive quarter of revenue growth is largely down to a 33% increase in its sportsbook revenue. It noted that 19 out of the 28 races at Cheltenham this year were profitable for the company compared to the dismal 11 in 2016.

Paddy Power Betfair Chief Executive, Breon Corcoran comments: “Reversing the trend of the past two years, results at Cheltenham 2017 favoured bookmakers and this contributed to good revenue growth.

“Combined with the annualisation of merger-related cost savings and continued focus on operating efficiency, this resulted in a doubling of operating profits in the first quarter.

“Since then, however, at high profile events such as the Grand National, Premier League football and the US Masters, results favoured customers, and overall gross win margins were weak in April.”

The impressive results continue in other countries with revenue in its Australia operations growing by 21% in local currency, whilst the US reported a 12% increase in revenue in the first quarter.