Shareholders in gaming machine group Aristocrat Leisure (ASX:ALL) will receive a higher interim dividend of 36 cents per share after the company reported a 9% rise in after-tax earnings to $711 million for the six months ending on March 31.
The company informed the ASX on Thursday that the 20% increase in the interim dividend (6 cents per share) stemmed from a 6.1% rise in revenue to over $3.26 billion.
Aristocrat stated that its "normalised profit after tax and before amortisation of acquired intangibles (NPATA)" was $764 million, up 16% (13% in constant currency) compared to $659 million in the prior corresponding period.
Management attributed the higher result to North America Gaming Operations, which "once again delivered strong revenue growth," while "Pixel United executed improved performance in ongoing mixed market conditions."
"The result also included continued investment in design and development (D&D), the scaling of Aristocrat Interactive, and benefits from lower net interest expense compared to the prior corresponding period."
Segment revenue increased by $189 million (6% in reported currency and 4% in constant currency) compared to the prior corresponding period, totaling $3.269 billion.
Aristocrat noted that gaming revenue increased by $140 million, "with strong performance in North America Gaming Operations reflecting the expansion of the installed base and the strength of the portfolio."
"Pixel United bookings declined 1% in local currency compared to the prior corresponding period, with strength in Social Casino franchises continuing to outperform the market."
"Interactive revenue increased by $38 million compared to the prior corresponding period, with growth in Customer Experience Solutions (CXS) and the continued scaling of iGaming across North America and Europe," directors said in Thursday’s statement.
Directors stated that segment profit rose by $194 million (15% in reported currency, 12% in constant currency) compared to the prior corresponding period in 2022-23, reaching $1.5 billion.
"Gaming profit increased by $96 million, with North America up $56 million and Rest of World (RoW) up $40 million. Improved margin was driven by volume growth and product mix."
"In Pixel United, the margin increased by 5.6 percentage points to 35%, and profit increased by $78 million, with a strong focus on driving operational efficiency and dynamic user acquisition (UA) optimization."
