Codere Online has reported significant year-over-year improvements in the third quarter of 2023, with only one region seeing a decrease in comparison to the same period last year.
Following the results, the operator has increased its 2023 guidance, with CFO Oscar Iglesias reaffirming that a “positive adjusted EBITDA and cash flow” is expected in 2024 as well.
Publishing its Q3 financials, Codere Online declared a total revenue for the quarter of €41.1m, up 42 per cent YoY, while net gaming revenue has risen by 41.2 per cent YoY to €43.2m (Q3 2022: €30.6m) thanks to a “higher number of active customers and higher spend per customer”.
Split per vertical, 58 per cent of the Q3 NGR came from casino operations, while 42 per cent was generated by sports betting.
Average monthly active players rose by 19 per cent YoY as well to 124,470 (2022: 104,311) with nearly 230,000 new customer registrations. However, first time deposits dropped by 20 per cent to 69,000 (2022: 86,252).
“We’re very pleased with our performance in the third quarter and to be presenting another set of impressive results.”
Aviv Sher, CEO of Codere Online
Codere Online also reported a 30 per cent conversion rate and a cost per acquisition of €200, making the average so far across 2023 €180.
Adjusted EBITDA in Q3 broke even (2022: negative €12.8m) following “higher revenues and lower investment in marketing”, as only €19.7m was spent (2022: €24.3m) in that division.
The operator has reported a net loss of €1.8m (2022: €11.6m loss) and a total cash position of €43m as of September 30, 2023.
Aviv Sher, CEO of Codere Online, stated: “We’re very pleased with our performance in the third quarter and to be presenting another set of impressive results.
“This quarter we not only posted significant net gaming revenue growth of 41 per cent to €43m, but also took a significant step in our path to profitability with break-even adjusted EBITDA in the period.
“It was a solid quarter for sports betting, with the return of the major sporting events, but also for our casino product, which contributed 58 per cent of our revenue in the period.”
The operator attributed the growth in NGR in comparison to the previous year to improvements seen in both Spain and Mexico.
Spain’s NGR rose by 26.8 per cent YoY to €18.9m (2022: €14.9m), with average monthly active players improving as well by 17 per cent to 41,022 (2022: 35,191).
Mexico’s NGR increased by 63 per cent in comparison to the previous year to €21m (2022: €12.9m), with average monthly active players growing by 39 per cent to 51,759 (2022: 37,414).
However, Colombia’s operations underwent a decline in both NGR and average monthly active players. NGR in the region dropped by five per cent to €1.8m (2022: €1.9m), while average monthly active players fell by six per cent to 22,651 (2022: 24,179).
The operator attributed the drop in performance in Colombia to “lower active customers resulting from the significantly lower investment in marketing” in the region. ‘Other’ NGR rose by 67 per cent to €1.5m (2022: €900,000).
“we expect to generate positive adjusted EBITDA and cash flow for the full year in 2024.”
Codere Online CFO Oscar Iglesias
In response to the Q3 results, Codere Online has increased its 2023 NGR and adjusted EBITDA outlook. 2023 NGR is now expected to be between €155m and €165m (€150m and €160m previously stated) while adjusted EBITDA is now expected to be between negative €10m and negative €18m (negative €15m-€25m previously stated).
A positive adjusted EBITDA and cash flow is also still expected in 2024.
Iglesias noted: “Our third quarter results have shown that the combination of a strong brand, high-quality customer acquisitions and an attractive product offering has allowed us to deliver not only strong top-line growth but also a significant improvement in profitability, with our first quarter of breakeven adjusted EBITDA less than two years following our US listing.
“Based on these strong results and recent trading activity, we now expect to generate between €155m-€165m of net gaming revenue and negative €10m-€18m in adjusted EBITDA in 2023, and reaffirm that we expect to generate positive adjusted EBITDA and cash flow for the full year in 2024.”
