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GVC pulled its interim dividend after swinging to a first-half profit as strong online gaming revenue partly offset weakness in retail as the sports-betting company closed its outlets following government-imposed lockdown measures.
For the six months ended 30 June 2020, the company reported a pre-tax profit of £55m compared with a loss of £12.3m on-year, while revenue fell 10% to $1.58bn.
Online net gaming revenue rose 19%, while UK retail like-for-like (LFL) revenue fell 50%, and European retail revenue fell 48.
Looking ahead, the company said, baring no further material disruptions, it expected the deliver underlying earnings (EBITDA) within a range of £720m-to-£740m for the full year.
The outlook was supported by the acceleration of £20m of synergies from the acquisition of Ladbrokes Coral, offset by one-off impacts in non-core businesses, it added.
'The strong performance of the online business coupled with the return of the sporting calendar and the re-opening of our retail operations means that the group is well placed for the balance of the year,' the company said.