ATG records Q1 revenue increase but deposit cap hits casino earnings

Swedish former horse racing monopoly Aktiebolaget Trav och Galopp (ATG) has recorded Q1 revenue of SEK1.46bn (£125.3m/€144.2m/$174.2m) – 11.0% more than last year.

Of this total, SEK1.27bn came from net gaming revenue, while agent revenue contributed a further SEK64m. The remainder was classed as other revenue.

The Swedish market continued to represent almost all of ATG’s revenue: SEK1.04bn came from its traditional revenue stream of Sweden’s horse racing market, and SEK129m came from sports betting in Sweden.

A further SEK60m was the result of casino gaming – a 23.1% drop from the SEK78m posted this time last year. The operator said this was due in large part to the deposit cap imposed in Swedish online casino games from mid-2020. This cap now appears set to be extended until November 2021.

The Danish market contributed SEK42m to the gaming revenue, representing a SEK10m increase from last year.

After paying SEK253m in gambling tax, SEK116m worth of personnel costs and SEK604m of other expenses, ATG posted an operating profit of SEK435m – 21.1% more than 2020.

The operating margin of 30% is also an increase on 2020’s 26%.

After deducting SEK19m worth of income tax, the operator posted final profits of SEK416m, up 27.2% from Q1 of 2020.

ATG CEO Hasse Lord Skarplöth said: “Now that we’re entering the second quarter, there’s a big probability of seeing a trend break regarding ATG’s percentage growth in comparison with last year.

A big thank you to all the employees who despite the stressful time we have lived and live in continue to have full focus on an exciting gaming experience in a neat and flexible way for everyone of our customers.”

Original Article