Who thinks snow encouraged 'surge' in online gaming? Here's Nigel Hicks, an analyst at Liberum Capital, questioning William Hill's chief executive, Ralph Topping, on Friday: Hicks: "Do you think the poor weather helped online?" Topping: "No, that's bollocks. The real world doesn't work that way. Sorry to be so diplomatic." 
Share:  Who thinks snow encouraged 'surge' in online gaming?<span class="sent"> Here's <span class="analyst">Nigel Hicks</span>, an analyst at Liberum Capital, questioning <span class="company">William Hill</span>'s chief executive, Ralph Topping, on Friday: Hicks: "Do you think the poor weather helped online?" Topping: "No, that's bollocks.</span> The real world doesn't work that way. Sorry to be so diplomatic." Tweet this 

A good run will trigger a flood of money to back the team, despite its history of heroic failure, although a victory would be a financial disaster. William Hill currently makes England joint 5 1 second favourites with Brazil, although other several other bookies are offering 11 2. The Cheltenham Festival, which takes place next month, will also be important, with a victory for Kauto Star in the Gold Cup likely to cost bookmakers a small fortune with hefty bets already riding on the short priced favourite. Net revenue at William Hill grew 4 per cent to £997.9m while, after exceptionals, profits came in at £120.9m, down 59 per cent as the bookie grappled with the integration of its online business and took a £20.9m hit as a result of "ineffective hedging". The dividend, at 7.5p, is down 3 per cent. Paul Leyland, a gaming analyst at Collins Stewart, noted that margins could be squeezed this year as the company embarks on a promotional frenzy in a bid to win new business during the World Cup. 
Share:  A good run will trigger a flood of money to back the team, despite its history of heroic failure, although a victory would be a financial disaster. <span class="company">William Hill</span> currently makes England joint 5 1 second favourites with Brazil, although other several other bookies are offering 11 2. The Cheltenham Festival, which takes place next month, will also be important, with a victory for Kauto Star in the Gold Cup likely to cost bookmakers a small fortune with hefty bets already riding on the short priced favourite. Net revenue at <span class="company">William Hill</span> grew 4 per cent to £997.9m while, after exceptionals, profits came in at £120.9m, down 59 per cent as the bookie grappled with the integration of its online business and took a £20.9m hit as a result of "ineffective hedging". The dividend, at 7.5p, is down 3 per cent.<span class="sent"> <span class="analyst">Paul Leyland</span>, a gaming analyst at Collins Stewart, noted that margins could be squeezed this year as the company embarks on a promotional frenzy in a bid to win new business during the World Cup.</span>...<span class="company">William Hill</span> currently makes England joint 5 1 second favourites with Brazil, although other several other bookies are offering 11 2. The Cheltenham Festival, which takes place next month, will also be important, with a victory for Kauto Star in the Gold Cup likely to cost bookmakers a small fortune with hefty bets already riding on the short priced favourite. Net revenue at < Tweet this 

But the company is however facing a difficult trading environment and could even find itself on the end of tax raising measures to help cut the deficit, some analysts fear Panmure Gordon's Simon French said: 'We believe expectations for UK retail are too optimistic generally despite a likely positive impact from the football World Cup 'In addition, recent press reports have highlighted the possibility that gross profits tax could rise from 15% to 175% at next month's budget' William Hill is also likely to update on current trading after January's snow led to the loss of around 60 racing fixtures Results from said the disruption had seen the amount staked by punters fall 11% so far this year, although profits are ahead thanks to cost cutting measures, big spending high rollers and a lower tax bill The UK's crawl out of recession in the final three months of last year will be under the spotlight on Friday when statisticians give their latest estimate on growth The 01% advance for the economy given by the first estimate a month ago ended six straight quarters of contraction, but was greeted with dismay by the City and politicians alike 
Share:  But the company is however facing a difficult trading environment and could even find itself on the end of tax raising measures to help cut the deficit, some analysts fear<span class="sent"> Panmure Gordon's <span class="analyst">Simon French</span> said: 'We believe expectations for UK retail are too optimistic generally despite a likely positive impact from the football World Cup 'In addition, recent press reports have highlighted the possibility that gross profits tax could rise from 15% to 175% at next month's budget' <span class="company">William Hill</span> is also likely to update on current trading after January's snow led to the loss of around 60 racing fixtures</span> Results from said the disruption had seen the amount staked by punters fall 11% so far this year, although profits are ahead thanks to cost cutting measures, big spending high rollers and a lower tax bill The UK's crawl out of recession in the final three months of last year will be under the spotlight on Friday when statisticians give their latest estimate on growth The 01% advance for the economy given by the first estimate a month ago ended six straight quarters of contraction, but was greeted with dismay by the City and politicians alike Tweet this 

Nick Batram, an analyst at KBC Peel Hunt, said: 'On most levels Ladbrokes is lagging behind its closest quoted peer [William Hill] 
Share:  <span class="sent">Nick Batram, an analyst at KBC Peel Hunt, said: 'On most levels Ladbrokes is lagging behind its closest quoted peer [<span class="company">William Hill</span>]</span> Tweet this 

Nick Batram, an analyst at KBC Peel Hunt, said: 'On most levels Ladbrokes is lagging behind its closest quoted peer [William Hill] 
Share:  <span class="sent">Nick Batram, an analyst at KBC Peel Hunt, said: 'On most levels Ladbrokes is lagging behind its closest quoted peer [<span class="company">William Hill</span>]</span> Tweet this 

Paul Leyland at Collins Stewart highlighted depressed revenues from machines and in traditional over the counter business"While the weather certainly played a significant part, the machine result demonstrates the scale and urgency of the turnaround, and we note the 'disruption' alluded to in the new machine trials with some concern," he said He believes the share price "places too much hope on a turnaround story", especially if compared to William Hill, which closed up 17p at 2024pThere was some welcome respite for JJB Sports investors, who have seen the shares fall 28% since the start of the year, after a note from Panmure Gordon helped lift the retailer 275p, or 145%, to 2175p The broker resumed coverage of the shares with a "buy" recommendation and 265p price target noting October's rights issues and the company's plans to be fully stocked in time to benefit from this summer's world cup finals"Following a successful £100m capital raise, the company has the necessary balance sheet strength to sustain a full recovery," said analyst Jean Roche, adding store improvements should drive like for like salesOn Aim, oil and gas company Cove Energy shot up 1650p or 702% to 3825p after announcing a "significant discovery" off Mozambique 
Share:  <span class="sent"><span class="analyst">Paul Leyland</span> at Collins Stewart highlighted depressed revenues from machines and in traditional over the counter business"While the weather certainly played a significant part, the machine result demonstrates the scale and urgency of the turnaround, and we note the 'disruption' alluded to in the new machine trials with some concern," he said</span> He believes the share price "places too much hope on a turnaround story", especially if compared to <span class="company">William Hill</span>, which closed up 17p at 2024pThere was some welcome respite for JJB Sports investors, who have seen the shares fall 28% since the start of the year, after a note from Panmure Gordon helped lift the retailer 275p, or 145%, to 2175p The broker resumed coverage of the shares with a "buy" recommendation and 265p price target noting October's rights issues and the company's plans to be fully stocked in time to benefit from this summer's world cup finals"Following a successful £100m capital raise, the company has the necessary balance sheet strength to sustain a full recovery," said analyst Jean Roche, adding store improvements should drive like for like salesOn Aim, oil and gas company Cove Energy shot up 1650p or 702% to 3825p after announcing a "significant discovery" off Mozambique Tweet this 

Paul Leyland at Collins Stewart highlighted depressed revenues from machines and in traditional over the counter business"While the weather certainly played a significant part, the machine result demonstrates the scale and urgency of the turnaround, and we note the 'disruption' alluded to in the new machine trials with some concern," he said He believes the share price "places too much hope on a turnaround story", especially if compared to William Hill, which closed up 17p at 2024pThere was some welcome respite for JJB Sports investors, who have seen the shares fall 28% since the start of the year, after a note from Panmure Gordon helped lift the retailer 275p, or 145%, to 2175p The broker resumed coverage of the shares with a "buy" recommendation and 265p price target noting October's rights issues and the company's plans to be fully stocked in time to benefit from this summer's world cup finals"Following a successful £100m capital raise, the company has the necessary balance sheet strength to sustain a full recovery," said analyst Jean Roche, adding store improvements should drive like for like salesOn Aim, oil and gas company Cove Energy shot up 1650p or 702% to 3825p after announcing a "significant discovery" off Mozambique 
Share:  Paul Leyland at Collins Stewart highlighted depressed revenues from machines and in traditional over the counter business"While the weather certainly played a significant part, the machine result demonstrates the scale and urgency of the turnaround, and we note the 'disruption' alluded to in the new machine trials with some concern," he said He believes the share price "places too much hope on a turnaround story", especially if compared to <span class="company">William Hill</span>, which closed up 17p at 2024pThere was some welcome respite for JJB Sports investors, who have seen the shares fall 28% since the start of the year, after a note from Panmure Gordon helped lift the retailer 275p, or 145%, to 2175p The broker resumed coverage of the shares with a "buy" recommendation and 265p price target noting October's rights issues and the company's plans to be fully stocked in time to benefit from this summer's world cup finals"Following<span class="sent"> a successful £100m capital raise, the company has the necessary balance sheet strength to sustain a full recovery," said analyst <span class="analyst">Jean Roche</span>, adding store improvements should drive like for like salesOn</span> Aim, oil and gas company Cove Energy shot up 1650p or 702% to 3825p after announcing a "significant discovery" off Mozambique...Paul Leyland at Collins Stewart highlighted depressed revenues from machines and in traditional over the counter business"While the weather certainly played a significant part, the machine result Tweet this 

Shares rose 6% amid upgrades to City profit forecasts, but analysts warned this year will have got off to a difficult start due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football cancellations William Hill made no mention of current trading in its brief update yesterday Wyn Ellis, an analyst at Numis Securities, increased his projection for 2010 earnings by 4% to £280m However, he said: "We believe that the outlook for land based gaming remains difficult and uncertain — cyclical recovery is not a given and rises in unemployment could weigh heavily "There are also potential tax risks and the seemingly inexorable rise in machine income cannot continue indefinitely" 
Share:  Shares rose 6% amid upgrades to City profit forecasts, but analysts warned this year will have got off to a difficult start due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football cancellations<span class="sent"> <span class="company">William Hill</span> made no mention of current trading in its brief update yesterday <span class="analyst">Wyn Ellis</span>, an analyst at Numis Securities, increased his projection for 2010 earnings by 4% to £280m</span> However, he said: "We believe that the outlook for land based gaming remains difficult and uncertain — cyclical recovery is not a given and rises in unemployment could weigh heavily "There are also potential tax risks and the seemingly inexorable rise in machine income cannot continue indefinitely" Tweet this 

A GOOD end to 2009 helped bookmaker William Hill shrug off problems sparked by unfavourable sports results, writes Philip Waller William Hill traded well in the fourth quarter following a difficult autumn, when Premier League football matches yielded few draws and plenty of victories for favoured teams such as Manchester United and Chelsea Gross win margins for 2009 returned to the normal range of between 17 per cent and 18 per cent while final quarter net revenues rose 6 per cent, leading to a 4 per cent gain for the year as a whole and full year earnings of about £250million The shares rose 6¼p to 192p following upgrades to City profit forecasts but analysts warned of a difficult start to this year due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football fixture postponements Numis Securities analyst Wyn Ellis increased his 2010 earnings forecast 4 per cent to £280million but sounded caution about the impact of joblessness, tax rises and the rise of the internet 
Share:  A GOOD end to 2009 helped bookmaker <span class="company">William Hill</span> shrug off problems sparked by unfavourable sports results, writes Philip Waller <span class="company">William Hill</span> traded well in the fourth quarter following a difficult autumn, when Premier League football matches yielded few draws and plenty of victories for favoured teams such as Manchester United and Chelsea Gross win margins for 2009 returned to the normal range of between 17 per cent and 18 per cent while final quarter net revenues rose 6 per cent, leading to a 4 per cent gain for the year as a whole and full year earnings of about £250million The shares rose 6¼p to 192p following upgrades to City profit forecasts but analysts warned of a difficult start to this year due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football fixture postponements<span class="sent"> Numis Securities analyst <span class="analyst">Wyn Ellis</span> increased his 2010 earnings forecast 4 per cent to £280million but sounded caution about the impact of joblessness, tax rises and the rise of the internet</span> Tweet this 

But analysts warned this year will have got off to a difficult start due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football cancellations William Hill made no mention of current trading in its brief update yesterday Wyn Ellis, an analyst at Numis Securities, increased his projection for 2010 earnings by 4% to £280m However, he added: "We believe that the outlook for land based gaming remains difficult and uncertain – cyclical recovery is not a given and rises in unemployment could weigh heavily "There are also potential tax risks and the seemingly inexorable rise in machine income cannot continue indefinitely "We also perceive long term structural challenges, as horse racing continues to decline and the challenge of the internet mounts" 
Share:  But analysts warned this year will have got off to a difficult start due to the icy weather, which has caused high levels of horse racing and football cancellations <span class="company">William Hill</span> made no mention of current trading in its brief update yesterday<span class="sent"> <span class="analyst">Wyn Ellis</span>, an analyst at Numis Securities, increased his projection for 2010 earnings by 4% to £280m However, he added: "We believe that the outlook for land based gaming remains difficult and uncertain – cyclical recovery is not a given and rises in unemployment could weigh heavily</span> "There are also potential tax risks and the seemingly inexorable rise in machine income cannot continue indefinitely "We also perceive long term structural challenges, as horse racing continues to decline and the challenge of the internet mounts" Tweet this