Intralot profits to rise
Intralot, the world’s second-largest lottery systems supplier, expects this year’s net profit to come in at -115 million, its chief executive told an annual shareholders meeting yesterday. «The group’s net profit is seen up 10 percent at -115 million this year,» Intralot’s CEO Constantinos Antonopoulos said. «Sales are seen up 11.2 percent to -880 million this year.» Shareholders approved a -0.66 dividend per share for last year. The dividend translates into a 2.7 percent yield, based on Tuesday’s closing price of -24.48. Intralot, with operations in 32 countries, has expanded aggressively in recent years to cash in on the liberalization of world gaming markets. The company is also in talks with large funds as it eyes bidding for lottery projects in the United States, Antonopoulos told shareholders. «We have to cooperate with financial agencies, equity funds able to invest along with Intralot,» Antonopoulos said. «We are in talks with large funds.» Its shares trade at about 16 times estimated 2007 earnings per shares, compared with a multiple of 27 for Italy’s Lottomatica and 16 for Ladbrokes. (Reuters)
