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Cheltenham punters have put a dent in the profits of bookmakers Ladbrokes, which yesterday warned investors it expected annual operating profit to fall after a poor performance from horse racing and online gaming in the first quarter.

Ladbrokes Plc rose to its highest in five years after the UK gambling operator said it expanded a partnership for online and mobile software with Playtech Ltd, which ended a joint venture with William Hill Plc this month.

British betting services giant Ladbrokes has acquired the Dublin-based betting exchange, Betdaq for an initial consideration of €30m.

Third-quarter net revenue at Ladbrokes’ Irish operations grew by 1.7% year-on-year when measured on a constant currency basis.

The Irish arm of British bookmaker Ladbrokes grew its operating profits by 76.3% and net revenue by nearly 5% in the first half of this year.

Favourable results from last month’s Cheltenham Festival drove first-quarter net revenue up by almost 20% at the Irish operation of Ladbrokes.

A good run of results at the Cheltenham racing festival and the popularity of gambling machines helped Ladbrokes toast a rise in profits today.

Operating profits fell by 15.6% at the Irish operations of international betting and gaming group Ladbrokes last year, although the business did manage to marginally grow revenue.

Ladbrokes said punters staked nearly £13bn (€15.7bn) in its UK shops last year as the high street bookie continued to defy the economic squeeze.

REVENUES at the Irish operations of gaming group, Ladbrokes, grew by just under 14% on a year-on-year basis in the third quarter.

A surge in revenues from gaming machines today helped betting firm Ladbrokes offset the impact of the UK's August riots and unfavourable horse racing results.

UK betting giant Ladbrokes today spurned a second major takeover opportunity after walking away from a bid for rival Sportingbet.

FIRST-HALF operating profit at Ladbrokes’ Irish operations fell by 33.3%, on a year-on-year basis, to £3.8 million (€4.4m) as well-backed Irish horses cleaned up at high-profile meets like Cheltenham and Royal Ascot, the company said yesterday.

GOALKEEPER Sean Whitty’s sudden-death heroics earned De La Salle, Waterford their first FAI Schools Tony O’Neill Senior Cup title at Tolka Park yesterday.

A TIGHT focus on cost control helped the Irish arm of British bookmaker, Ladbrokes, grow its operating profit by 24% last year to £10.9 million (€13m) — even though the combined amount of money spent at the company’s Irish shops fell by 12% to just under £557m.

Ladbrokes reported a 20% jump in annual profits today as the UK’s biggest bookmaker overcame a 7% fall in bets staked at its shop counters.

BRITISH bookmaker Ladbrokes has reported significant year-on-year gains in third-quarter operating profit and revenue, but has said the performance in its Irish division has remained flat.

Bookmaker Ladbrokes today reported a bounce back in quarterly profits after it benefited from a stronger start to the English football season.

LADBROKES saw a near 10% year-on-year fall in both gross win levels and the amount punters spent over the counter in its Irish operations during the first half of this year, adding that conditions here remain “challenging”.

The FTSE 100 slipped into the red today as a surprise rise in US benefit claims took the gloss off decent half-year profits from insurer Aviva.

Bookmaker Ladbrokes today said the amount staked by punters at its UK shops dropped 7% despite the impact of the World Cup on first half results.

BRITISH bookmaker Ladbrokes hasn’t ruled out the prospect of further expansion in the Irish market, with the group’s new management happy with its under-performing operations here.