The Stars Group bullish on Australia, fearful of Russia

Online poker contributed less than two-thirds of The Stars Group’s (TSG) fourth quarter revenue, and the company expects that figure to shrink below 60% in 2018.

Figures released Wednesday show TSG’s revenue rising 16.1% to US$360.2m in the three months ending December 31, 2017. Adjusted earnings were flat at $147m but net earnings improved 4.7% to $47.2m.

For the year as a whole, revenue improved 13.6% to $1.31b, while adjusted earnings gained 14.5% to $600m and net earnings shot up 91.3% to $259.3m, thanks in part to the past year’s non-core asset sell-off.

TSG continues to lessen its dependency on real-money online poker revenue from its flagship PokerStars brand, despite exiting markets such as Australia and Colombia. Poker accounted for 65.1% of Q4 revenue, down from 70% one year earlier, while combined casino & sportsbook revenue claimed a 31.2% slice, up from 25.8%. TSG expects poker’s share of overall revenue to shrink below 60% in 2018 as the casino and sports verticals continue to expand their reach.