Plans for the sale of SIS shelved following strategic review

Plans to sell betting industry content and data provider SIS have been shelved, one of its shareholders revealed on Friday.

SIS brought in financial advisory firm Oakvale Capital last year to carry out a strategic review of the company, with one of the options a potential sale for a reported £200 million.

However, Catalyst Media Group (CMG), which owns a 20.54 per cent share in SIS, has told the stock market that the review had been concluded and that the SIS board had decided not to sell.

Instead, CMG said that the SIS board "has decided that shareholder value can best be maximised for the time being by continuing to implement the existing strategic development plan for the business, which will target growth in all SIS's product areas over the coming years".

The majority of SIS is owned by bookmakers, with Entain having a 23.41 per cent stake through Ladbrokes Coral, 888 a 19.51 per cent stake through William Hill and Fred Done a total 13.5 per cent stake – six per cent through Betfred following their purchase of the Tote and a 7.5 per cent personal shareholding. Apart from CMG, the other main non-betting industry shareholder is investment trust Caledonia Investments, which has a 22.55 per cent stake. 

SIS was hit hard by the closure of betting shops during the early stages of the Covid pandemic but had seen a recovery following the lifting of restrictions.

According to the most recent figures released by CMG, SIS recorded revenues of £125.8m in the six months to the end of September last year, an increase of nearly 11 per cent. However, operating profits fell to £1.9m from £3m.

SIS has agreed a number of new deals this year, including an extension to its media rights deal with Ireland's 26 racecourses for a further five years from 2024.

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