William Hill takes £20m hit

William Hill has taken a £20 million hit to its profits after it was stung by a string of 'customer friendly' results in December.
By The Newsroom
Published 9th Jan 2017, 09:37 BST
Updated 9th Jan 2017, 13:02 BST
File photo dated 18/09/16 of a William Hill sign outside a shop, as William Hill and Canadian poker firm Amaya have called time on talks over a potential £4.6 billion merger, following feedback from shareholders. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Tuesday October 18, 2016. Earlier this month the gambling giants said discussions were under way for a "merger of equals" which would create one of the world's biggest online gambling firms. See PA story CITY WilliamHill. Photo credit should read: Mike Egerton/PA WireFile photo dated 18/09/16 of a William Hill sign outside a shop, as William Hill and Canadian poker firm Amaya have called time on talks over a potential £4.6 billion merger, following feedback from shareholders. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Tuesday October 18, 2016. Earlier this month the gambling giants said discussions were under way for a "merger of equals" which would create one of the world's biggest online gambling firms. See PA story CITY WilliamHill. Photo credit should read: Mike Egerton/PA Wire
File photo dated 18/09/16 of a William Hill sign outside a shop, as William Hill and Canadian poker firm Amaya have called time on talks over a potential £4.6 billion merger, following feedback from shareholders. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Tuesday October 18, 2016. Earlier this month the gambling giants said discussions were under way for a "merger of equals" which would create one of the world's biggest online gambling firms. See PA story CITY WilliamHill. Photo credit should read: Mike Egerton/PA Wire

As a result, the high street bookmaker said full-year operating profit for 2016 would come in at around £260 million, the bottom end of its £260 million-280 million range.

The group said unfavourable horseracing and football results impacted its win margins after a December in which a number of favourites came out on top.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Interim boss Philip Bowcock said: “Importantly, the improvements we saw in wagering in online and Australia in the second half have continued in recent weeks.

“However, all four divisions saw customer-friendly results at the back end of the year, which translated into profits being circa £20 million below our prior expectations. With key underlying trends continuing to be positive, the recent run of sporting results have not changed our confidence in a better performance in 2017.”

William Hill is a major employer in Yorkshire, with more than a fifth of its global workforce in the region. It employs 1,300 people in Leeds.

Related topics:AustraliaYorkshireLeeds