According to the interim official report (pdf) released on April 24 by Evolution Gaming Group for the first quarter, its operating income reached €501.5m for the said quarter, representing an annual increase of 16.7%. The increase is because the firm is trying to satisfy the growing demand.

Higher revenue collected:

This revenue is bigger than that collected during Q423 by 5.5% and is higher than the €429.6m that the company collected during Q123.

As for EBITDA, it also increased to EUR345.8m with a margin of 69.0%. EBITDA in this quarter grew by 15.2% compared to the same quarter of 2023. In addition, it increased by 2.6% compared to EBITDA in Q423, which amounted to €337.0m.

The overall income of the provider for the mentioned quarter amounted to €269.2m, and the profit per share amounted to €1.27. However, profit per share and total income decreased compared to the previous quarter, when the firm reached €1.31 in earnings per share and €282.9m in income.

Martin Carlesund, chief executive of Evolution, praised the company’s overall Q124 performance. Additionally, he pointed out that the live casino provider is in a good position to proceed with its upward growth course.

He commented: “Evolution is a growing, strong, profitable, all-equity funded company. In recent years our solid financial position has enabled us to remain focused on growth through periods of geopolitical uncertainty, a pandemic and rapid increases in interest rates. We will continue to invest and expand our global operations and come to work hungry, ambitious, and excited for what more we can achieve.”

Live casino as the main contributor:

The biggest contributor to the higher revenue was the firm’s live casino sector, which saw an annual increase of 19.8%, with an extra €25.7m in income in contrast to Q423, according to the report.

Despite these good results, the provider pointed out that additional work is needed to take full advantage of its strong position in the market and deliver enough products to satisfy demand. The aforementioned need for advancement was a usual theme in Evolution’s 2023.

Relatedly, Carlesund formerly said the firm wants to expand to include fresh game studios worldwide. It wants to debut at least four studios during this ongoing year, in addition to the establishment in Bulgaria that officially opened its doors to the public during Q423.

In addition to casino growth, the firm also experienced increased numbers regarding Random Number Generator (RNG). Additionally, RNG income for Q124 hit €70.1m, an increase compared to €69.8m, which was the profit in Q423.  Evolution’s CEO pointed out that the company wants to fuel that growth by embodying artificial intelligence (AI) into its infrastructure while simultaneously raising the number of new title releases.

During Q124, the firm debuted more than 20 fresh RNG games. However, it plans to grow that number further during the course of the year.

Speaking on the subject, Carlesund commented: “During the period we have continued to increase our table capacity to meet the market demand, and I am pleased to say that the progress made in Q4 has carried over into this year. All together we have a much improved balance between supply and demand today compared to last year.”

International performance:

Evolution has revealed growth in each region. An example is strong growth in Asia and “stable” growth in Europe.

In March, it announced a fresh alliance with Fanatics to expand its presence across North America, in addition to extending its business relations with Caesars Digital. In addition, part of the agreement with Caesars involves a fresh studio in the Garden State.

As for the LatAm market, the firm revealed strong annual growth, although it pointed out that it’s currently pending regulation in Brazil, which is forecast for later in 2024.

Plans for the future:

After the mentioned excellent performance, the company pointed out that its orientation for the entire year stays at the EBITDA margin of 69-71%.

However, the crucial goal of the firm for this ongoing year is to raise delivery efficiency to meet market demand. However, the strong original goal is that the extension margins ” pave the way” for additional income growth in the future. To achieve this, the provider will officially open fresh studios in the Czech Republic and Columbia throughout this year.

Throughout a call with investors following the release of Q124 earnings results, Carlesund emphasized the significance of extension. Commenting on that, he said: “It’s the second quarter in a row where we’re ramping up and accelerating, and we will continue to do that. We’re going to build the right amount of tables to get the maximum out of the market in 2024.”