Gambling giant still growing

POKER machine supplier Aristocrat Leisure says it is now the fourth biggest digital social gaming company in the world.

Aristocrat chief executive Jamie Odell says Aristocrat’s digital social gaming operation was the tenth-biggest by revenue just two years ago, and was fifth largest at the end of September 2016.

“However, based on the most recent industry reports, Aristocrat has moved up an additional place and is now in fourth position globally,” Mr Odell told shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting in Sydney yesterday.

Aristocrat’s digital social gaming business includes the Heart of Vegas suite of games, and Cashman Casino which was launched in December.

Mr Odell said that as at November 30, 2016, Heart of Vegas was the third-highest grossing social casino app, with revenue growing by 82 per cent and profits by 127 per cent.

Meanwhile, Aristocrat confirmed its expectation of normalised profit growth of 20 to 30 per cent for the full year to September 30.

The company said its performance in the first four months of its fiscal year had been strong.

Shares in Aristocrat finished 18 cents higher, or 5.1 per cent, at $16.68.