Star Entertainment has warned of a coronavirus hit to its bottom line after the casino operator posted a near 50 per cent plunge in half-year net profit thanks to lucky VIPs.
The operator of The Star Sydney, The Star Gold Coast and Treasury Brisbane had its lowest win rate for a half (0.73 per cent) with VIPs since 2008, which left net profit down 48 per cent at $76.5 million for the period to December 31.
Revenue fell 8.0 per cent to $1.05 billion.
Chief executive Matt Bekier gave a simple explanation: “We were unlucky with the VIPs.
“You get a couple of people getting lucky in a short period of time, that swings you round.”
The VIPs are visitors from overseas who can play with half a million dollars a hand.
They make up about 8.0 per cent of Star’s business.
Cautious consumers and the impact of Australia’s bushfires contributed to challenging conditions.
However, Mr Bekier said “in very difficult circumstances, we’ve been able to grow the domestic part of the business substantially”.
The company said also warned the coronavirus outbreak has recently had a substantial impact on the number of visitors to its gaming venues.
There had been signs in recent weeks customers were returning in better numbers, it said.
Shareholders’ dividend remains unchanged at 10.5 cents per share, fully franked.
AAP
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