Churchill Downs hits revenue record despite social casino slump

Churchill Downs Inc. posted record revenue in Q3 despite decreased activity in its social casino division.

Figures released Thursday show CDI revenue topping $303.4m in the three months ending September 30, an 8% year-on-year gain and a new CDI record. Adjusted earnings fell 7% to $67.3m while net income more than doubled to $8.7m.

The Big Fish Games online gaming division continued to be CDI’s top earner with revenue up 18% to $122.3m, although the division’s earnings fell nearly one-third to $23.4m, dragged down (in part) by $4.4m in extra spending on user acquisition.

The bulk of online revenue came from casual and mid-core free-to-play games, which shot up more than one-quarter to $51.8m. This helped offset a 7% decline in social casino bookings ($44.2m) and a 16% fall in premium games ($22.5m). The social casino operation saw an 8% increase in average paying users but a 14% decline in average bookings per paying user, suggesting some social casino whales either lost interest of defected to another provider.