Aristocrat makes $16m loss November 25, 2014 - 9:24AM Gaming company Aristocrat Leisure has unveiled a $16 million loss but expects to grow market share and revenue in the year ahead. Aristocrat made a net loss of $16.4 million for the year to September 30, down from a $107.2 million profit a year ago. The result was weighed down by a writedown in the value of Aristocrat's Japan business and the disposal of its non-core lotteries interests. Excluding the one-offs, Aristocrat lifted profit 10 per cent to $118.1 million. Chief executive Jamie Odell said the Japan writedown and the disposal of the lotteries business had removed distractions for the company's management. And, he said, the acquisition of Video Gaming Technologies during 2013/14 would drive a transformation in the business and would lift revenues this financial year. He said 2015 "will be a transformative year for Aristocrat as we integrate the VGT business and take the next step forward in executing our vision to deliver the worlds greatest gaming experience every day." The company expects to grow market share despite dealing with weak demand in a number of segments, he added. "While we expect our operational momentum and market share performance to lift further over the full year to 30 September 2015, generally flat to weaker demand in a number of key segments will be a constraint," he said. Aristocrat will continue to focus on the things we can control - in particular improving our portfolio focus, competitiveness and earnings mix over the 2015 full year. The company announced an unfranked final dividend of eight cents per share, up from 7.5 cents a year ago, for a full year payout of 16 cents per share, compared with last year's 14.5 cents.