Gaming firm Stanley Leisure posted a 13 per cent drop in first-half profits on this morning after a losing streak at its key Crockfords casino, but said its luck was changing and its betting shops growing well.
Finance Director Michael Riddy told Reuters said the firm's win margin at Crockfords in London's exclusive Mayfair district had picked up in recent weeks, but was still not back to normal.
He also said any continued shortfall from Crockfords should be made up by a strong performance from the firm's 640 betting shops, which are benefiting from moves to relax Britain's gaming laws, such as the introduction of virtual betting machines.
Stanley, which runs 41 casinos and is Britain's fourth biggest bookmaker, said profit before tax and goodwill fell 13 per cent to 21.5 million pounds in the six months to October 26th.
Analyst forecasts had ranged from 19.2-22.9 million pounds.
Crockfords broke even after making a 10.6 million pound profit in the same period of 2002.
However, provincial casinos performed well and operating profits in the betting division jumped 44 per cent, driven by the expansion of fixed-odds betting terminals which allow punters to bet on games such as virtual roulette.
Chairman Leonard Steinberg, who founded the business in 1958 with two betting shops in Belfast, Northern Ireland, owns about 18 per cent of Stanley Leisure.