William Hill Online sees 35% earnings hike

BRITISH bookmaker William Hill has reported excellent business on its online platform among its Irish customers, as part of a trading update for the 13 weeks to the end of December.

The company – which has a retail presence of 35 shops around the country – said that its William Hill Online division delivered a strong performance in the fourth quarter and that full-year earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) for that part of the overall business were up by approximately 35%. Group net revenue, yesterday’s update added, was up by 6% in the final three months of the year and by approximately 4% for the full year.

A spokesperson for the company said that there are no plans to alter its number of Irish retail outlets, after it closed around 15 under-performing stores last year. They added that much would depend on the recovering state of the Irish economy, but that management would continue to “watch with interest”.