888, the parent company of Pacific Poker, reported Total Operating Income of $61 million during the second quarter of 2009, a 7% increase compared to the year’s first quarter. However, it translated into a 12% dip year over year.
During the second quarter of 2008, 888 reported Total Operating Income of $69 million. Its business to consumer (B2C) Total Operating Income was $48 million in the second quarter of 2009, representing a growth of 7% over the first quarter, but a drop of 19% compared with the same interval last year. 888’s business to business (B2B) Operating Income weighed in at $12 million, a 4% increase over the first quarter this year and a 20% increase year over year.
Gigi Levy, Chief Executive Officer of 888, commented in a statement made to the London Stock Exchange, “We enter the seasonally quieter summer period with delivery of our strategy on track and we remain committed to investing in the business in spite of the macroeconomic environment. We are confident of delivering further growth during 2009 based on additional planned B2C activities and a set of newly launched B2B partnerships which we expect to start generating revenues in the coming months.” Given the global economic meltdown, 888’s Operating Income sank 13% during the first half of 2009 year over year to $118 million.
Casino Operating Income came in at $29 million, a slide of 20% in comparison to the second quarter of 2008, but an increase of 10% from its first quarter tally. Its Poker Operating Income totaled $13 million, a fall of 36% compared to the second quarter of 2008 (when revenues were $20 million) and a 9% drop from Q1 2009. The company’s Operating Income from Emerging Offerings grew by 88% in comparison to Q2 2008 and rose by 40% compared with Q1 2009. Emerging Offering Operating Income amounted to $7 million.
888 reported a customer base of 180,000 during the second quarter of 2009 for its poker and casino arms, a decrease of 8% from the headcount reported during the same period last year. However, the 180,000 customers translated into a 7% increase over the first quarter of 2009. The number of active poker customers was 142,000, a decrease of 7% over last year’s second quarter, but a growth of 7% over Q1 2009. The publicly traded company reported a casino base of 67,000 players, a drop of 10% year over year, but a growth of 7% over the first quarter. All told, the company has 6.4 million casino, poker, and sports betting customers.
The Quarterly Total Operating Income per casino customer, $439, was down 11% in the second quarter of 2009 in comparison to the same period in 2008. That total was on par with the first quarter of this year, increasing by 2%. The Quarterly Total Operating Income per poker customer amounted to $88, a fall of 32% in comparison to the second quarter of 2008 and a slide of 15% in comparison to the first quarter of 2009. 888 officials attributed the dramatic dip in poker revenue to “an extensive campaign late in the quarter which brought many customers toward the end of the quarter who did not have sufficient playing time to materially contribute to revenues.”
During the first half of 2009, Poker Operating Income was $26 million, a decrease of 37% in comparison to the $42 million taken in during the first half of 2008. The company also revealed that its average daily revenue during the first 28 days of July (the start of the second half of 2009) was 2% higher than during the first half of the year and on par with the overall tally during the second quarter.
888 is traded on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol “888.” It closed trading on Thursday down £0.05 to £79.95. Its full H1 2009 results will be released on August 27th.
