GGRAsia – Paradise 4Q loss up sequentially, positive EBITDA

Paradise 4Q loss up sequentially, positive EBITDA

Feb 26, 2021 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Paradise Co Ltd, an operator of foreigner-only casinos in South Korea, says its fourth-quarter net loss stood at KRW59.21 billion (US$52.83 million), a 263.3 percent increase from the KRW16.30 billion recorded in the preceding quarter. The company had reported a net loss of nearly KRW9.52 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019.

The casino firm reported earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of KRW6.92 billion for the three months to December 31, compared to a negative result of KRW5.23 billion in the preceding quarter. The firm’s EBITDA was still down 84.2 percent in year-on-year terms.

The company said in a Thursday filing that aggregate sales for the three months to December 31 was KRW104.59 billion, a 15.5 percent improvement sequentially. Such sales were down 61.2 percent from a year earlier.

The group’s casino sales in the fourth quarter rose by 37.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to KRW54.99 billion, but were down 50.1 percent from the prior-year period, according to a separate presentation published on Thursday. The company said the sequential improvement in casino sales was “backed by strong local casino demand.”

Paradise Co’s gaming operations are at: Walkerhill (pictured) in the South Korean capital, Seoul; Jeju Grand on Jeju Island; Busan Casino in the southern port city of Busan; and Paradise City, in Incheon, near the main international airport serving the country’s capital Seoul.

Of those four properties, the group’s Walkerhill gaming venue generated highest casino sales in the fourth quarter, according to the presentation.

The Walkerhill gaming venue had closed on December 15, as a Covid-19 countermeasure. The venue, which reopened in early January, is again requesting all incoming customers to show evidence of a negative test for Covid-19 infection, which must come from either a recognised health agency, or a hospital.

For full-year 2020, Paradise Co reported a net loss of KRW109.85 billion, compared to a profit of KRW15.11 billion in 2019. Revenue for the 12 months of 2020 was KRW454.44 billion, down 53.6 percent from the previous year.