Investing.com — raised its full-year underlying operating profit guidance to at least £68 million on Wednesday, clipping above the top of analyst forecasts, after the British gambling company posted like-for-like net gaming revenue growth across all businesses in the third quarter, sending shares up over 8%.
The guidance beat the upper end of a company-compiled analyst consensus range of £65.1 million to £68.2 million for the 2025-26 financial year.
Group like-for-like net gaming revenue (NGR) for the third quarter rose 5% to £205.4 million year-on-year, with year-to-date NGR up 6% on the prior year.
Interim chief executive Richard Harris said the results demonstrated “the resilience of the business” and that, with actions taken to offset higher Remote Gaming Duty and “clear plans in place to drive sustainable revenue growth, the Group is well placed to deliver the medium-term objective of generating at least £100m operating profit.”
Grosvenor venues, the group’s largest division, posted Q3 LFL NGR of £95 million, up 5%, with gaming machines the fastest-growing vertical at plus 10%.
The company flagged potential softness from uncertainty around international travel but said it expected continued revenue growth from that segment.
Digital LFL NGR rose 4% to £60.9 million. The UK digital business grew 2% in the period. Rank said it had implemented cost mitigations, including reductions in below-the-line marketing spend, supplier costs and headcount, to offset the impact of Remote Gaming Duty rising to 40%, effective April 1, 2026. The international digital business grew 14% on a LFL basis.
Mecca venues posted Q3 LFL NGR of £37.8 million, up 5%. Rank said the business was on track to deliver profit growth in 2026-27, accelerated by the abolition of Bingo Duty, also effective April 1, 2026.
Enracha, the group’s Spanish venues business, was the fastest-growing division with Q3 LFL NGR up 9% to £11.7 million, driven by gaming machines growth of 27%. Year-to-date NGR growth for Enracha stood at 7%.
Rank said it expected further year-on-year revenue growth in the fourth quarter. On energy costs, it said volatility was not expected to have a material impact on profitability under its hedging policy.