GGRAsia – Success Universe returns to profit as Ponte 16 biz improves

Success Universe returns to profit as Ponte 16 biz improves

Mar 29, 2019 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck

Macau casino investor Success Universe Group Ltd reported a profit attributable to shareholders of nearly HKD54.5 million (US$6.9 million) for 2018, having made a loss the year before. The positive result for full-year 2018 was due mainly to its share of profit flowing from the Ponte 16 casino hotel (pictured) in Macau, the company said on Thursday in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Success Universe’s share of the profit from the Ponte 16 complex for the year of 2018 was approximately HKD68.1 million, compared with a loss of approximately HKD9.9 million in 2017.

Located on the Macau peninsula and operated under SJM Holdings Ltd’s gaming licence, the Ponte 16 casino had – as of end-2018 – 97 gaming tables for the mass market, seven high-limit gaming tables and five VIP gaming tables in December.

For the year ended December 31, group-wide revenue was slightly above HKD1.12 billion, up by 89.9 percent from HKD589.9 million for the same period of 2017, positively impacted by a revenue increase in the firm’s travel business. The group’s cost of sales however increased by 90 percent year-on-year, to nearly HKD1.09 billion.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the Ponte 16 complex increased by 58 percent year-on-year, to HKD356.7 million in 2018.

Success Universe made a full-year loss of about HKD29.8 million in 2017, losing money for the second year in a row, partly because business at Ponte 16 was disrupted by floodwaters caused by Super Typhoon Hato – the city’s worst fiercest storm in 53 years. The company also reported a one-time loss on the sale of a lottery in mainland China.

A Success Universe subsidiary bought a commercial property in Wan Chai, Hong Kong, for HKD106.8 million last August, adding to the group’s property portfolio.

Revenue of the property investment business in 2018 amounted to approximately HKD30.1 million, representing an increase of nearly 362 percent as compared with approximately HKD6.5 million for the last corresponding year. Segment profit however fell to approximately HKD37.7 million, compared with nearly HKD83.4 million in 2017, said the firm.