Rank boosted by casino arm

25th Feb 2011 09:47

A strong performance from its Grosvenor Casino business helped bingo hall and casino operator Rank hit the top end of forecasts last year, though business has been more mixed in 2011.Profits in 2010 rose to £55.2m from £48.5m, with all four of its business showing an improvement. Group revenue rose to £567.8m (2009: £540.0m) helped by an 11.2% increase in revenue from food and drink. The dividend rises to 2.4p from 1.35pGrosvenor Casinos revenue improved by 8.5% to £238.6m with the 'G Casino' venues doing well. Operating profit increased by 16.5% to £36.0m. Mecca Bingo grew revenue by 0.6% to £234.5m but operating profit declined by 8.0% to £29.7m, largely as a result of increases in taxation. Top Rank España revenue rose 2.2% to £37m from despite the relative weakness of the euro. In local currency, revenue increased by 6.2% as a result of rising customer visits and higher average spend per visit. Revenue from Rank Interactive increased by 13.6% to £57.7m, with meccabingo.com generating the majority of the growth. Operating profit increased by 5.3% to £7.9m.This year so far, Rank has seen 2% growth in like-for-like revenue during the first eight weeks of the year. On a segmental basis, the performance is mixed.Revenue from Grosvenor Casinos declined by 6% in the period despite a 16% increase in visits. Revenue from Top Rank España declined by 18% with the introduction of a full smoking ban resulting in a 14% drop in spend per visit. Customer visits were down by 5%.Mecca Bingo achieved an 8% increase in revenue, due to 4% growth in customer visits and a 4% improvement in spend per visit. Rank Interactive generated 25% growth in revenue, due to strong growth from meccabingo.com and its online casino brands.