By Stuart Condie
SYDNEY–Shares in Australian hospitality operator Endeavour Group are on course for their lowest close ever after Victoria’s state government announced tighter restrictions on gaming machines.
The stock was down 10% at 5.62 Australian dollars (US$3.84) midway through Monday’s trading session. The decline wiped more than A$1 billion from the market capitalization of the group, which spun out of supermarket operator Woolworths in 2021.
The state government in Victoria, which is Australia’s second-most populous state, said at the weekend that it will overhaul electronic gaming-machine regulations. Reforms include restricted opening hours for venues containing machines and slashing the maximum amount that gamblers can put in.
E&P Financial analyst Phillip Kimber estimated that Endeavour’s fiscal 2024 net profit would fall by 3% for every 10% reduction in Victorian electronic gaming-machine revenue.
Endeavour reported a net profit of A$495 million in fiscal 2022. In February, it reported a A$364 million net profit for the first half of fiscal 2023, up 17% on year.
Write to Stuart Condie at [email protected]
Read the full article here
