Opap Says Second-Quarter Profit Rose to 126.1 Million Euros

Opap SA (OPAP), Europe’s biggest listed gambling company, said profit in the second quarter rose 18 percent, helped by lower taxes and a rebound in the Stihima betting game.

Net income rose to 126.1 million euros ($158.5 million) from 106.9 million euros a year earlier, according to an Athens bourse filing today. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization rose 4.1 percent to 160.2 million euros from 154 million euros a year earlier.

Sales slid 7.5 percent to 989.6 billion euros, hurt by lower spending as the Greek economy contracted. The economy is due to shrink about 7 percent this year, a fifth year of recession, as austerity measures linked to the international rescue of the country curbs pensions and wages.

Betting in June on the European Championship, the soccer tournament that is held every four years, helped sales for fixed-odds sports betting game Stihima, which rose 2.2 percent to 370.5 million euros. The Kino numbers game saw sales fall 5.2 percent to 516.9 million euros.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eleni Chrepa in Athens at echrepa@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jerrold Colten at jcolten@bloomberg.net