Loto-Québec on Friday posted first-quarter net results more than twice as large as those for the same period last year, supported by an 85.5% increase in revenues.
The state-owned company recalled that the quarter from April to June last year was marked by the pandemic measures, which forced the suspension of several of its activities. For the quarter ended June 27, Loto-Québec posted consolidated net income of $446.5 million, up 128.1% from $195.7 million for the same period last year.
The company’s CEO, Jean-François Bergeron, argued that the comparison with the first quarter of the 2019-2020 fiscal year, i.e. before the pandemic, was “fairer”. This shows an increase of 13.4% in revenue and 32.4% for net income, which would reflect “the work done to reduce [les] charges,” said Mr. Bergeron.
Lottery revenue fell 7% in the first quarter from a year ago to $256.6 million. However, those of casinos and gaming halls jumped 242% year on year to reach 263.4 million, and those of gaming establishments climbed 438.4% to 228.5 million. Casinos, gambling halls and gambling establishments were essentially closed in the first quarter of last year, and did not begin to resume operations until the last two weeks of June 2021.