Casino Buoys PartyGaming Financials

Overall, 2007 fourth quarter sales for PartyGaming were up 52 percent over the same quarter from the previous year, but this was largely thanks to the company’s casino business, not its well-known PartyPoker unit. 

Yes, poker revenues in the fourth quarter of 2007 were 23 percent higher than the comparable quarter in 2006, but sales were actually down 3 percent from the previous quarter of 2007.  On the other hand, casino sales in the quarter were 156 percent higher than the same quarter in 2006, and up 15 percent from the third quarter, to £42.3 million.  Sports betting from the company’s PartyBets site was up 50 percent year-over-year. 

Mitch Garber, PartyGaming’s CEO, says that the poker revenue drop was the result of a shift in Party Poker’s loyalty program.  He said that previously, PartyPoker was “rewarding customers for disloyalty.”  Now, because of greater bonus payouts, the yield per active player has decreased 9 percent, even though the number of poker players increased 13 percent from the third quarter. 

Casino customers increased 9 percent from the third quarter and doubled year-over-year.   

PartyGaming’s share price was down 8.77 percent to 26p on the day.