Tatts hails “strong” lottery growth despite Lottoland criticism

Australian lottery and betting operator Tatts Group saw its profit jump double-digits in its fiscal Q1 thanks to a strong performance across its digital operations.

On Tuesday, Tatts issued a trading update which showed group revenue of A$743m (US $564.6m) in the three months ending September 30, a 6.8% rise over the same period last year. Earnings improved 9.6% to A$128.2m, while net profit after tax from continuing operations shot up nearly 15% to A$67.2m.

The company credited the gains to an increased focus on cost controls, as well as lottery customer enthusiasm driven by larger than usual jackpots. While the number of jackpots over A$15m during Q1 was unchanged from last year, the average size of each of these jackpots was A$7.5m higher, including two mega-pots of A$50m.

As a result, Tatts’ mainstay lottery revenue was up 8.8%, driven by even stronger digital lottery sales, which improved 29.6% year-on-year, boosting digital to 16.4% of all lottery sales.