Melco Crown sell-off props Crown Resorts 2016 profits

Presenting its full-year results (year ending 30 June), Crown Resorts LTD (Crown) has reported net profits of AUS $948 million (£555 million) up 14% on corresponding FY 2015 corporate earnings.

Crown year-end results would be propped by its AUS $602 million (£350 million) share sell-off in Melco Crown Entertainment (MCE), as the company reduced its shareholder equity from 37.3% to 27.4%.

In its regulatory filing, Crown detailed that the without its MCE ‘one-off’ gains the gambling operator would have posted adjusted full-year net profits of AUS $406 million down 22.7% on FY 2015 results.

Detailing its gambling divisions performance, Crown Australian casino properties’ in Perth and Melbourne would sustain EBITDA of AUS $949 million (£550 million).

However, its corporate performance would be dragged down by Macau MCE property impacts which saw the Asian division contribute AUS $42.7 million in corporate profits, down 65% on FY 2015.

“The 2016 full-year result reflects a solid performance from our Australian operations and continued subdued trading in Macau,” Crown Chief Executive Rowen Craigie said in a separate statement posted on the company’s website.

Crown governance stated that it was still committed to its Macau projects, despite its MCE sell-off, Rowen Craigie would detail that Macau still represented a ‘long term investment’ for Crown Resorts.