Betting firm Ladbrokes with rising profits this year

Britain's biggest bookmaker and the world's largest publicly traded gambling company, Ladbrokes Plc (LAD.L), announced it has seen a 13% increase in profits in the first four months of the year. According to the report, profits rose 13% in the first 4 months of 2008 until April 30th, excluding the bets placed by the "high rollers", i.e. those bettors placing five-figure wagers on a single bet, which could be quite volatile in nature. The gross win of the betting firm increased by 16% , also excluding the high rollers. Big role in the increased gambling profits of Ladbrokes is attributed to the increased soccer betting and the win for the gambling machines known as Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs). Changes in law allowed gambling companies to install machines offering both roulette and jackpot games and paying out as much as £500. The 26% gain in winnings from the FOBTs helped the gross winnings by 11%. Telephone wagering was also on the rise - 34% up for the first four months of the year.

Published on 05/16/2008