Gambling losses hurt Hilton Group's profits

Gambling losses hurt Hilton Group's profits

ALISTAIR MCARTHUR
business.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=552982005


HOTELS and gaming giant Hilton Group said a string of "unfavourable" results had recently hurt its gaming business, leading to a drop in profits.
Hilton, which also owns Edinburgh's Caledonian Hotel, said profits over the first four months of the current trading year were down, after punters scored on the horses.
The group, which operates about 400 hotels outside the United States and nearly 1900 Ladbrokes betting shops in the UK, saw profits slide by four per cent up to the end of April, reflecting "tough trading comparatives" in betting and gaming.
But it believed that Ladbrokes, its betting and gaming division, should show good growth in the second half, particularly with the expected acquisition of more shops shortly. Its hotels operation was also expected to see an improvement during the remainder of the year.
Looking at the figures for Ladbrokes, the company said the total gross win - the amount lost by gamblers - was in line with last year as the effect of stronger turnover was offset by lower margins, despite a 23 per cent increase in profits from online betting. Costs increased by 8.1 per cent. Of the total, retail win fell by one per cent "mainly due to weak horseracing margins".

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