Warhammer maker Games Workshop to reward staff with £20MILLION payout
Games Workshop is handing its employees £20million following another bumper year for the beloved tabletop games maker.
The Warhammer creator, which has struck a deal to have its creations star in potential TV and film blockbusters for Amazon, said the cash payments would be given on 'an equal basis' to every staff member.
Games Workshop's shares have soared in recent years and it joined the UK's leading FTSE 100 stock market index for the first time last December.
The £20million payout represents an increase on the £18million awarded last year and £11million the year before that.
It comes as Games Workshop forecast sales to soar to at least £560million for the year ending 1 June, up from £494.7million in the previous 12 months.
British actor and Superman star Henry Cavill, a self-declared lifelong fan of the figures, will star in and produce a Warhammer 40,000 series with Amazon Prime and Games Workshop.
Last December, Cavill posted on Instagram: 'To celebrate some Warhammer news, I decided to make a pilgrimage to the very first place I bought Warhammer models over 30 years ago....the Little Shop, on my home island of Jersey!
'My incredible team and I, alongside the brilliant minds at Games Workshop, have been working away in concept rooms, breaking down approaches to the enormity and magnificence of the Warhammer world.
'Together, we've been sifting through the plethora of incredible characters and poring over old tomes and texts.
'Our combined efforts have led us to a fantastic place to start our Universe, which has been agreed upon by those up on high at both Amazon and Games Workshop. That starting place shall, for now, remain a secret.'
Games Workshop said today that it expects to achieve record licensing sales of about £50million, although the company does not envision repeating that figure in the next financial year.
Alongside this, the business believes its core operating profits and pre-tax profits will total no less than £210million and £255million, respectively.
Two months ago, Games Workshop upgraded its earnings forecast thanks to strong trading across licensing and its core operations.
This followed the firm's best-ever first-half result, with sales buoyed by record retail sales in the UK, North America and Continental Europe.
Revenues were further boosted by the release of video game Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, which sold two million copies on the opening day of its launch and five million by the end of November.
During the half-year period, Games Workshop agreed 'creative guidelines' with Amazon to adapt Warhammer 40,000 into films and television shows.
In addition, the company entered the blue-chip FTSE 100 after enjoying nearly a decade of consistent growth under its chief executive, Kevin Rountree.
During his tenure, Games Workshop has improved its relationship with fans and introduced games with more simplified rules, including Blood Bowl, a parody of American football.
Its revenues benefited considerably from the Covid-19 pandemic, when consumers sought new indoor hobbies to occupy their time.
Although lockdown curbs eventually ended, the firm's trade has continued expanding, and its market value now stands at almost £5billion.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: 'Games Workshop has a rock-solid core business, underpinned by an army of fans emerged in its fantasy worlds who collect miniature figures and play its board games.
'This success has enabled the company to build a rich library of intellectual property that is now the platform for additional revenue generation.
'Licencing the rights to certain brands and characters is easy money, but Games Workshop is fiercely protective of its assets and won't let anyone come along and milk them.'
Despite the optimistic forecasts, Games Workshop shares were 4.5 per cent lower at 15,150p on Friday morning, making them the Footsie's biggest faller.
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