KUALA LUMPUR (April 22): UK-based casino operator The Rank Group Plc, which is controlled by Malaysian businessman Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan, has cut its earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) forecast for the financial year ending June 30, 2022 (FY22) to a range of £47 million to £55 million from the previously-guided EBIT range of £55 million to £65 million, as the company contends with the lingering impact of Covid-19 outbreak-driven movement restrictions.
"The performance of our venues softened in March (2022) and this has continued into the first few weeks of 4QFY22, impacting our current expectations for our full-year performance,” Rank chief executive officer John O’Reilly said in a statement on Thursday (April 21).
"We recognise the pressures on UK consumers but are confident that the improvements we are continuing to make to the customer proposition and the investments in our venues, alongside the gradually reducing impact of the pandemic and with it, the return of overseas customers, position us well for the year ahead,” O’Reilly said.
The Rank added that its UK venues (Grosvenor and Mecca) were closed for the entirety of 3QFY22 and highlighted its Enracha venues in Spain were open for part of the prior year 3QFY22 but under very severe capacity restrictions.
While the recovery is taking time, The Rank believes that there remains a strong path to recovery to pre-Covid-19 levels in the medium term.
“We enter the fourth quarter at the start of a traditionally low seasonal period in our Grosvenor venues with visit numbers down. We anticipate an improvement in performance post April, but it remains to be seen how the trends in the rate of return of office workers to city centres and overseas customers to London will develop towards the summer,” it said.
Rank said it will announce its preliminary results for the 12 months ending June 30, 2022 on August 18, 2022.