Ten-pin bowling operator Hollywood Bowl (BOWL) reported a jump in H1 revenues thanks to resilient demand for affordable leisure activities.
Investors were bowled over by the FTSE 250 firm’s reassuringly in-line H1 update. This showed 2.6% like-for-like growth in the core UK business.
Broker Cavendish described this as ‘a good result’ given the challenging wider UK hospitality market.
Affordable fun
Hollywood Bowl, which also runs mini-golf centres, delivered a 9.5% rise in total revenue to £141.5 million for the half to March 2026. This robust performance was underpinned by ‘strong demand’ for its family-friendly and affordable leisure activities.
UK revenue rose 9.4% to £118.4 million, while sales in Canada, where the company trades as Splitsville, skipped 12.8% higher to 42.9 million Canadian dollars.
While UK like-for-likes were up 2.6%, Canadian like-for-like growth was slower at just 0.5%. This reflected particularly snowy weather in Canada in H1, as well as the relative immaturity of the Canadian estate with some legacy centres within the mix.
‘The appointment of Laurence Keen as CEO of Canada underscores Hollywood Bowl’s commitment to the opportunity and we would expect him to implement best practice from the UK business,’ explained Cavendish.
In the growth lane
Hollywood Bowl CEO Stephen Burns said: ‘The benefits of the investments made throughout the UK and Canadian estate, combined with proactive demand generation initiatives and disciplined cost management, are reflected in our strong H1 performance.
‘Demand for high-quality, family leisure activities that offer great value for money also remains resilient in both territories,’ insisted Burns. ‘Our cash generative business model allows us to invest where we see opportunities and deliver profitable growth.’
Following the update, Cavendish reiterated its 380p price target and Buy rating. ‘We see Hollywood Bowl as a premium operator in the UK experiential leisure space and view the current valuation as attractive,’ commented the broker.
We are fans of Hollywood Bowl, a cash generative business whose high gross margins leave it well-insulated against inflationary pressures.
A robust, net cash balance sheet gives Hollywood Bowl the firepower for further expansion. We also note the company has a strong new centre pipeline ‘for FY2027 and beyond’.
Read the press release here: https://www.hollywoodbowlgroup.com/investors/regulatory-news/
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