SkyCity Entertainment, New Zealand's only listed casino company, has posted a 30 per cent gain in first-half profit, citing improvements across all its properties and lower funding costs.
Net profit rose to $NZ71 million ($A66.66 million), or 12 cents per share, in the six months ended December 31, from $NZ54.6m, or 9.3 cents, a year earlier, the Auckland-based company said on Thursday.
That's at the top end of the company's forecast range of $NZ69m to $NZ71m. Revenue increased 14 per cent to $NZ566m.
SkyCity, which has four casinos in New Zealand and two in Australia, benefited from improved trading at all its business.
Its international business, the term it uses for "high roller" gamblers, had record activity for the period with group turnover up 51 per cent to $NZ7.2 billion.
"We have continued to achieve strong growth across our New Zealand properties and International Business," said chief executive Nigel Morrison.
He said trading in January was broadly consistent with the trends seen in the first half of the year.
The company will pay a first-half dividend of 10.5 NZ cents a share on March 18, up from 10 NZ cents a year earlier.
