Games Workshop pays out £7.5m in bonuses to staff amid jump in profits; share price slumps

Games Workshop is handing out £2,500 to each staff member in December through a $7.5m bonus pot, after revealing a 12% rise in its half-year profits.

That total is up more than 66% compared to the £4.5m it split between employees in the same period last year, which broadly covers June to November.

The fantasy and sci-fi miniatures maker said it is expecting core revenue of at least £235m for the six-month period, up from about £212m year-on-year.

Profit before tax is expected to be £94m, up from £83.6m, although its operating profit from licensing out its intellectual property fell from £12.9m to £11m in the same time-frame.

The UK-based company said its results were “in line with expectations”, but its share price tanked more than 10% upon release of the estimates, which will be confirmed in its full half-yearly report on January 9.

Big releases from Games Workshop during the period included the tenth edition of Warhammer 40k and the associated big box of new miniatures, named Leviathan.

Last December the company announced a lucrative tie-up with Amazon, which will see The Witcher and Batman vs Superman star Henry Cavill head up a Warhammer 40k TV series.