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Aristocrat Leisure (ASX:ALL) reports major drop in half-year profit

ASX 200
ASX:ALL      MCAP $25.11B
25 May 2021 02:00 (AEST)
Aristocrat Leisure (ASX:ALL) - Managing Director & CEO, Trevor Croker

Source: Inside Asian Gaming

After its operations took a hit from the pandemic, Aristocrat Leisure (ALL) has posted a significant slide in its half-year earnings.

Revenue for the six months ending March 31 remained relatively stable, dropping just one per cent to around $2.23 billion as a result of foreign exchange headwinds.

However, after-tax profit fell 73.5 per cent to $346.5 million compared to more than $1.3 billion last year.

The drop was partly due to a 31.4 per cent slide in operating cash flow, which fell from $620 million to $425.1 million after several strategic investments were made to support customer recovery.

Still, Aristocrat said its portfolio of digital and gaming assets continued to grow over the period, with around 80 per cent of its revenue driven from recurring sources.

Roughly 10.9 per cent of the company’s revenue — or $242.7 million — was put towards game design and development as part of its “refreshed growth strategy and unrelenting commitment to exceptional market-leading product portfolios.”

Notably, Aristocrat saw a 44 per cent jump in purchases for online activities as sweeping lockdown measures kept people at home.

Like many gaming and entertainment companies, Aristocrat has so far has stood down 1000 workers, cut 200 jobs and transferred another 200 full-time positions to part-time roles.

“We expect uncertain and volatile conditions to continue near term, and we are closely monitoring key factors including consumer sentiment and gaming venue patronage,” said Managing Director and CEO Trevor Croker.

“Nevertheless, we enter the second half of fiscal 2021 with excellent momentum, resilience, and confidence with a strong balance sheet to continue to invest organically to grow share and accelerate growth through M&A in line with our rigorous criteria.”

Shares in Aristocrat Leisure finished trading today up 0.12 per cent to $40.70 each.

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