NagaCorp 3Q22 hit by low win, but business on an upward trend

NagaCorp, Cambodia’s only listed operator, said its third quarter EBITDA was hit by low win rates, but overall its business is on a stable upward trend. 

The company reported daily EBITDA for the quarter of $578, down 19 percent from the levels it was achieving in the first half of $719. NagaCorp said the win rates for all segments of the gaming business were lower than normalised rates and below the win in the first half.

Despite this, the company expects win rates to normalise going forward, with less volatility, as business volumes grow.

NagaCorp operates the NagaWorld casino in Phnom Penh. It has a long-term monopoly and no other casinos are permitted to operate within a 200km radius of the capital. 

Back in the black

For the first nine months of the year through to end-September, NagaCorp reported EBITDA of $183.2 million, reversing from on loss on that basis of $136.8 million. Gross gambling revenue was $343.9 million compared with $136.8 million in the same period a year earlier.

Premium mass led the growth coming in at $2.25 billion in rollings in the nine-months, up from $464.7 million a year earlier. Mass market table buy-ins rose to $811.1 million, up from $220 million. 

In the third quarter alone, the average daily volume for NagaCorp in premium mass was 6.2 percent higher than in the first half, while mass market and electronic gaming machines volume was 5.1 percent higher. 

In the year-ago period, gaming operations were suspended from March 2nd to Sept. 14th due to the Covid pandemic. 

Tourism numbers rising

NagaCorp management said the steady recovery in its business has been helped by increasing arrivals to Cambodia as travel restrictions around the region ease. In the first eight months of this year, visitor arrivals were up by 720 percent to 998,272. 

Cambodia is also benefiting from increased trade with China following the implementation of the Cambodia-China Free Trade Agreement, which came into force at the beginning of 2022. 

China accounted for 43 percent of fixed-asset investments in Cambodia of $2.99 billion in the first half.

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