OPAP hit by tax hike as profit drops in 2016
OPAP has cited an increase in tax rates in its native Greece as the main reason behind a year-on-year decline in profit during the 12 months to December 31, 2016.
Full-year earnings at the gaming company amounted to €307.5 million ($328.5 million), down 18.4% on the total achieved in the previous year, while net profit dropped 19.2% year-on-year to €170.2 million.
The decline in profit comes after the Greek government raised taxation on OPAP’s revenue by five percentage points to 35% as part of an international bailout.
Elsewhere, full-year wagers fell 0.6% to €4.23 billion, with gross gaming revenue at the company down slightly by 0.2% on a year-on-year basis.
Sports betting revenue fell 3.6% to €397.2 million, despite a slight improvement in the fourth quarter, while full-year lottery revenue was up by 1.4% to €841.3 million.
The company added that total divided per share will reach €0.72.
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