William Hill share price: what’s the outlook as jobs slashed?
The bookmaker is set to shutdown 700 high street stores, putting 4,500 jobs at risk, after UK government clampdown on fixed-odds betting terminals.
William Hill announced that it plans to shutdown around 700 of its high street betting shops, putting more than 4,500 jobs at risk, after the UK government clampdown on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBT).
The decision to close hundreds of physical locations came after the UK government limited the maximum stake on FOBT’s to £2 back in April, which has put a major dent in the company’s gaming machine revenues.
‘A large number of redundancies is anticipated with 4,500 colleagues at risk,’ the company said in a statement.
‘The Group will look to apply voluntary redundancy and redeployment measures extensively and will be providing support to all colleagues throughout the process.’
William Hill’s share price edges lower on store closures
William Hill’s share price tumbled as much as 2% to 158p on Thursday morning after the news of its store closures hit.
However, its stock has since recovered, trading at 160p as of 16:10 GMT, a touch under its opening price of 161p.
Learn more about trading William Hill and other stocks with IG.
Ladbrokes Coral also plans to close hundreds of stores
William Hill isn’t the only bookmaker closing high street stores in the wake of the government clampdown on FOBT’s, however, with rival Ladbrokes Coral looking to close around 900 locations.
‘We now expect up to 900 shops to be at risk of closure over the next two years as a result of the reduction in maximum stakes on FOBTs to £2,’ Ladbrokes Coral owner GVC said in a statement.
‘This is not a decision we are taking lightly, and we will be working hard to minimise the number of redundancies through redeployment within the business, whilst offering redundancy terms enhanced beyond the statutory requirement.’
This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients.
CFDs are a leveraged products. CFD trading may not be suitable for everyone and can result in losses that exceed your initial deposit, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved.
Be ready to act on ECB opportunities
Learn how the ECB’s monetary policy announcements affect interest rates and price stability ahead of its next meeting in 12 September 2024.
- How might the next meeting affect the markets?
- What are the key rate decisions to watch?
- Why is the Governing Council announcement important for traders?
Live prices on most popular markets
- Forex
- Shares
- Indices
Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All shares prices are delayed by at least 15 mins.
