PokerTek falls as Q3 loss widens
Shares of PokerTek Inc. (Nasdaq: PTEK) were dealt a losing hand after the close on Monday when the maker of electronic poker tables posted a wider third-quarter loss.
For the three months ended Sept. 30, the Matthews, N.C.-based company posted a net loss of $4.1 million, or $0.37 per share, compared with a loss of $2.3 million, or $0.24 per share, a year earlier. Two analysts polled by Thomson Financial were projecting a loss of $0.22 per share.
PokerTek explained in a press release that expenses outpaced revenues due to investments in the development of new markets for automated casino poker tables and amusement devices.
Revenues jumped a whopping 350% to $1.1 million from $0.2 million for the third quarter of 2006.
“We finished the third quarter of 2007 with 131 PokerPro casino tables installed worldwide and saw several customers open fully automated PokerPro poker rooms,” said CEO Chris Halligan in a statement, referring to the company’s signature product.
During the third quarter, PokerTek installed tables in the Galaxy StarWorld Hotel and Casino, the tallest hotel in the Chinese region of Macau, famed as Asia’s leading gambling center.
At 3:46 p.m. ET, shares of PokerTek (PTEK) had fallen $1.43, or 18%, to $6.50. That’s dangerously close to the 52-week low of $6.63, which was established on Nov. 2. The 52-week high of $14.40 was reached on Nov. 13, 2006.
