"We delivered another quarter of strong growth in Q3, more than doubling last year's results across key measures including wagers and revenue," said Michael Moskowitz, Chair and CEO of NorthStar. "In a seasonally slow quarter, we continued to expand our customer base through our premium, differentiated product offering, while at the same time demonstrating our ability to effectively manage costs."
Financial highlights for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023:
Total wagers (1) at Northstarbets.ca were $138.0 million in Q3 2023, an increase of 140% compared to $57.6 million in Q3 2022.
Revenue, net of bonuses, promotional costs and free bets, was $4.7 million in Q3 2023, including $0.2 million of services revenue contributed by Spreads.ca, compared to $2.0 million in Q3 2022, an increase of 131% over the same quarter in the previous year.
Gross gaming revenue (2) at NorthStarbets.ca was $5.5 million in Q3 2023, an increase of 120% over $2.5 million in Q3 2022.
Gross margin was $1.6 million in Q3 2023, an increase of 527% over $0.3 million in Q3 2022, and represented 35% of revenue compared to 13% of revenue in Q3 2022.
On October 31, 2023, the Company announced the completion of a private placement financing of approximately $10.3 million consisting of common shares, warrants and convertible debentures.
Recent operating highlights:
The Company's Insights content-proprietary editorial features offered seamlessly to customers within the NorthStar Bets website and app-continues to be a strong differentiator and driver of value. In Q3, players who read Insights content have 40% higher deposits on average than other players.
The Company underscored its commitment to innovation with the announcement that it was first to market with an artificial intelligence feature that offers customers personalized sports bets based on their unique preferences.
In early November 2023, Spreads.ca, an iGaming site owned and operated by the Abenaki Council of Wolinak, was rebranded to Northstarbets.com. The rebranding is expected to lead to continued development of the NorthStar Bets brand outside of Ontario.
"As we enter the busiest time of the year with most of the major North American sports leagues now underway, we are very well positioned to drive further improvements in our results," added Mr. Moskowitz. "Our strengthened balance sheet, strategic partnerships, ongoing innovation in our product offering, and development of our brand across Canada all point towards solid growth for the rest of 2023 and into next year."
Additional Information
For additional information, please refer to Company's condensed consolidated interim financial statements for the three- and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2023, and the corresponding interim management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A"). These documents are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com, and on the Company's corporate website at www.northstargaming.ca.
About NorthStar
NorthStar proudly owns and operates NorthStar Bets, a made-in-Ontario casino and sportsbook gaming platform that provides players with a uniquely local, premier user experience. The NorthStar Bets sportsbook provides real-time news, stats, analysis and scores directly in the betting environment along with the most popular online casino games. NorthStar also provides managed services to Spreads.ca an iGaming site owned and operated by the Abenaki Council of Wolinak.
A Canadian company, NorthStar is uniquely positioned to become a convergence leader in the intersection of sports media and sports wagering thanks to its partnerships and agreements with leading media companies. NorthStar is committed to operating at the highest level of responsible gaming standards.
No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
Non-IFRS Financial Measures
Statements in this news release make reference to "total wagers" and "gross gaming revenue", which are non-IFRS (as defined herein) measures that the Company believes are appropriate to provide meaningful comparison with, and to enhance an overall understanding of, the Company's past financial performance and prospects for the future. These measures are not recognized measures under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") and do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are, therefore, not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute for analysis of the Company's financial information reported under IFRS. We believe that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS measures, including industry metrics, in the evaluation of companies in our industry. Management also uses non-IFRS measures and industry metrics in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, the preparation of annual operating budgets and forecasts and to determine components of executive compensation. Wagers is calculated as the total amount of money bet by customers in respect of bets that have settled in the applicable period. Wagers does not include free bets or other promotional incentives, nor money bet by customers in respect of bets that are open at period end. Gross gaming revenue is calculated as dollar amounts bet by customers less the dollar amounts paid out to the customers in respect of such bets which have settled in the applicable period.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Statements
This communication contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws in Canada ("forward-looking statements"), including without limitation, statements with respect to the following: financial guidance for 2023, expected performance of the Company's business, expansion into new markets and future growth opportunities and expected benefits of transactions. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future and allowing readers to get a better understanding of the Company's anticipated financial position, results of operations, and operating environment. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "continues", "forecasts", "projects", "predicts", "intends", "anticipates" or "believes", or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. This information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the following: risks related to the Company's business and financial position; risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry risks; future legislative and regulatory developments; and the ability of the Company to implement its business strategies. NorthStar believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements should not be unduly relied upon. Information contained in forward-looking statements in this communication are provided as of the date hereof and NorthStar disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or future events or results, except to the extent required by applicable securities laws.
For further information:
NorthStar Gaming
Corey Goodman
647 530 2387
investorrelations@northstargaming.ca
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1"Total wagers" is a non-IFRS financial measure. For important information on the Company's non-IFRS measures, see "Non-IFRS Financial Measures".
2"Gross gaming revenue" is a non-IFRS financial measure. For important information on the Company's non-IFRS measures, see "Non-IFRS Financial Measures".
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