Racing, casino and social gaming operator Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) generated record revenue in 2015 following a full year’s contribution from its Big Fish Games division.
CDI reported revenue of $1.21b in 2015, 49% more than in 2014, while earnings rose two-thirds to $335.6m and net income spiked 42% to $65.2m. For the three months ending Dec. 31, CDI’s overall revenue rose 62% to $272.4m, while the company netted a $7.5m profit versus a $13.8m loss in Q4 2014.
Big Fish Games’ social and mobile games offering was the undisputed Q4 star, generating revenue of $113.7m and earnings of $28.5m. Big Fish Casino led the way with $48.1m, although this was up a mere $1.2m year-on-year. Average bookings per paying user rose 15% but this was offset by an 11% decline in average paying users.
Big Fish’s Casual Free-to-Play division was the real star, nearly tripling year-on-year to $47.4m. Average paying user ranks rose 132% and average bookings per paying user rose 26%, which the company credited to the continued success of its Gummy Drop! title and the late Q3 launch of Dungeon Boss.