Looking Ahead -- According to Jane Anscombe of Edison Investment Research, Sportingbet's year-end results, scheduled for release Oct. 17, will be difficult to interpret, distorted by significant exceptional charges of £300 million-plus relating to its discontinued operations and resultant restructuring. Hemscott reports Anscombe as saying that there may be further "legacy" costs of between £3 million and £5 million, which may depress the company's continuing business. In line with previous forecasts, however, Anscombe estimates the company will generate profits of £11.5 million before taxes and legacy costs. Take a look back at full-year results from Sportingbet in 2006.
Appointed -- Gala Coral has appointed The Red Brick Road (Red Brick) to cover advertising for the whole of its business. "We’re delighted that our relationship with the Gala Coral Group has become so significant," said Red Brick Managing Partner Paul Hammersley. "This is a critical time in their business development and new legislation creates both challenges and opportunities."
Warned -- U.K.-based Rank Group has warned annual operating profits could be "significantly" below last year's figures due primarily to new U.K. laws covering smoking and gaming terminals. "While the recent trading difficulties affecting our U.K. retail businesses are worse than we had anticipated, we understand that they are shared by the broader U.K. bingo club and casino markets and are not unique to Rank," it said in a trading update issued today. The company noted that its retail business, comprised of Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos, had seen a "significant deterioration" in revenue in recent weeks. "Should the disappointing levels of recent weeks' trading continue through to the end of the year . . . group operating profit for the full year would be significantly lower than in 2006," it added. Shares in Rank were down 34p, or 21.38 percent, to 125.
Coming Soon -- After a Swedish study revealed that 27 percent of its 16,500 respondents exhibited symptoms of problem gambling in relation to online poker, IGN has learned the study's results are not yet available in English but will be soon. We've been in touch with the study's author, Kalle Tryggvesson of Stockholm University, as well as Ola Wiklund of Swedish law firm Wistrand Advokatbyrå. With input from Tryggvesson, Wiklund and Marie Risbeck, research coordinator at the Statens folkhälsoinstitut, our analysis of the study will be posted next week.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, William Hill was down 12.50p to 643.50, Sportingbet remained even at 47.50p and Ladbrokes was down 9.75p to 419.25.