Acquired -- Ladbrokes has acquired Northern Irish bookie Eastwood for £117.5 million. While Ladbrokes expects the acquisition to increase EBITDA "quite substantially," analysts are concerned that Ladbrokes may have overpaid. "This is a strategically substantial acquisitions in a growth market," Reuters quotes Investec Analyst ,i>Matthew Gerard as saying. "But this is reflected in a rather punchy price." Shares in Ladbrokes were down 1.50p to 289.50 today on the LSE. Eastwoods' betting estate consists of 54 betting shops throughout Northern Ireland.
888 Joins FTSE 250, Rank Gains -- In other financial news, 888 continued to perform well in London today, after receiving a promotion to the FTSE 250. The group will replace Alliance Trust on the mid-cap index, as Alliance is set to move to the FTSE 100. On the back of Wednesday's 4.8 percent gain, shares were up 2p to 122.00. Shares in Rank Group also received a lift today, as Malaysia-based Genting upped its stake in the U.K-based operator to 11.03 percent. Shares gained 5p, or 5.51 percent, to 95.75. Asia-based investment firm Guoco did likewise Wednesday, upping its holding in Rank to 6.05 percent.
Another Big Month for ISWI -- Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc. U.K.-based subsidiary Global Internactive Gambling recorded roughly £1.9 million in turnover during January 2008 -- a single-month record -- besting figures from the previous-year period by 260 percent. GIG operates the ISWI-developed SportXction play-by-play live wagering system, whose licensees include Ladbrokes and Caliente. "The size of this increase in one year demonstrates the appeal of the product and should help us to secure additional business worldwide," said ISWI Chief Executive Bernard Albanese in the company's full-year results.
Quoteworthy -- "It's a complete mess. They've (U.K. government) dillied, they've dallied, they've created all sorts of problems for all sorts of people. And they've ended up with a dog's breakfast."
- From Don Foster, Liberal Democrat culture spokesman, in an interview with the Financial Times discussing the U.K. government's controversial decision to nix plans for a supercasino in Manchester.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, Playtech was up 29.50p, or 8.61 percent, to 372.00, William Hill was down 9.25p to 384.50 and PartyGaming remained even at 27p.