ferret's stock to watch AUSTRALIA'S FAMOUS BETTING SHOP PAYING...

ferret's stock to watch AUSTRALIA'S FAMOUS BETTING SHOP PAYING 15c AND LOOKING GOOD

Sydney - Tuesday - January 24: (RWE Australian Business News)

OVERVIEW
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Tattersall's is only a relative newcomer to the Australian Stock Exchange list being first quoted on July 7.

In tougher times a gambling and betting stock is hard to beat, apart from making beer.

Earnings in the 2004/05 financial year were ahead of prospectus forecast.

The company reported normalised revenue of $2.423 billion and EBITDA of $247.6 million for the last 12 months.

Both were above expectations.

Tattersall's managing director and CEO, Duncan Fischer, said at the time "We have delivered on the 2005 targets set in the prospectus and established a strong foundation from which to continue to grow the
company.

"We are on track to achieve our forecast for the 2006 year and are focused on continuing to improve the performance of our existing business by building on our strong brand portfolio and extensive distribution networks.

"The company has undertaken a successful transition to publicly listed status with a team of experienced people that are committed to driving outcomes that create value for all our stakeholders," Mr Fischer
declared.

At the company's first meeting as a public company, on
November 21, chairman David Jones told shareholders that directors expected to declare a fully franked dividend of 8.75c a share for the seven month period from June 1 to December 31.

The distribution will be paid around the end of the first quarter of 2006.

The company also expected to pay a full franked dividend of 7.5c a share for the period from January 1 to June 30 this year.

This represents an annualised dividend of 15c a share, which equates to a payout of 82.4 per cent of forecast net profit.

The meeting was told that directors had established a policy to pay fully franked dividends on a six monthly basis with interim dividends expected to be paid in April and final dividends in October each year.

Tattersall's climbed into notice yesterday after its 26 per cent-owned Scientific Games Corporation signed a deal with EssNet AB to acquire substantially all of the online lottery assets of EssNet.

The sale is subject to certain closing conditions, including regulatory and customer approvals, purchase price adjustments, and other specified conditions.

Following the sale, EssNet AB will retain its shares in EssNet Interactive (the gaming systems technology business), along with the cash proceeds of the sale and other minor assets.

EssNet Interactive will continue to market and develop its interactive gaming system technology for the global market, which has shown increasing demand for the progressive technology, directors say.

As part of the sale arrangements, Tattersall's says it will
continue to pursue international lottery opportunities through licensing agreements with Scientific Games in respect of the EssNet lottery system, and also from other potential co-operative arrangements.


SHARE PRICE MOVEMENTS
*********************

Shares of Tattersall's fell 6c to $3.04 yesterday. Rolling high for the year to date was $3.62 and low $3.02. The company has 706.7 million shares on issue with a market cap of $2.19 billion.

Tattersall's now operates lotteries under government licences in four Australian jurisdictions, has licences in five Pacific Island nations, and operates one of the nation's biggest venue networks businesses with revenue of around $2.5 billion.

The company is a leading domestic and international operator, employing more than 300 staff at its head office in Melbourne.

Tattersall's operates terrestrial business networks in Australia and overseas, and was one of the first licensed Australian operators to recognise and develop the potential of the internet.

More than a third of the Melbourne adult population participates in its lottery and venue businesses.

Further, the lottery retail network consisting of over 900 retail outlets employs another 3,000 Australians in small business.

Tattersall's venue network of around 260 hotels and clubs in Victoria employs directly or indirectly an estimated 13,000 people in catering, maintenance, business management, computer technology,
advertising, marketing, accounting, bar service and sales.

At an operational level, Tattersall's is comprised of six
business units - Commercial Operations, Technology, Finance and Administration, Business Development, Corporate and Internal Audit.

Each business unit is staffed by specialist personnel responsible for business growth, ensuring the smooth operation of its business operations, and maintaining the integrity of the Tattersall's name.

The company's product range includes brands, systems and services that differentiates it in the market place and deliver sustainable financial returns to the company.

Tattersall's remains a leader in the development and management of sophisticated technology.

The Technology division is responsible for ensuring the efficient and cost-effective provision of IT services, maximising availability, functionality and support for both production systems and business IT systems.

The Finance and Administration Division is responsible for ensuring the maintenance and enhancement of the group's shareholder value through its proactive management of the human and capital assets of the
group.

The responsibilities of this division include the effective
stewardship of financial and physical assets, procurement and purchasing, process improvement, the management of relationships with suppliers and
focused and continuing development of Tattersall's staff.

The division also has specialists within it focused on strategy, corporate planning and investor relations.

BACKGROUND
**********

For more than a century Tattersall's has been providing
Australians with trusted entertainment.

From its foundation in 1881, Tattersall's has continued to contribute significantly to the communities in which it operates.

In the 1880's, Australia provided a litany of stories about its pioneers, men and women who possessed extraordinary drive, character and enterprise to overcome the odds. George Adams was one of those people.

George Adams came to Australia from England with his family at just sixteen years of age. In turn, he worked as a coach driver, a stock dealer, saddler, baker and even tried his luck on the goldfields.

In 1881, as a publican, he organised a public sweep on the Sydney Cup - and the rest is history.

Appropriately, a horse called "Progress" won the Cup and it has been progress from that day forward - the George Adams fledgling sweepstakes was the first of the cornerstones on which more than 120 of
Tattersall's history has been built.

Tasmania also provided a crucial part of the foundation for much of the business as it is known today.

While George Adams confronted a number of "mainland" obstacles in the formative days of his business, the near collapse of the Bank of Van Diemen's Land and a teetering Tasmanian economy created the opportunity
for the lottery business to prosper.

Encouraged to move to Hobart in 1895 - a move sanctioned by the Tasmanian Government, Tattersall's organised a Grand Lottery of a number of the Bank's major properties.

Tattersall's involves itself in all aspects of the community, helping those with disabilities, supporting hospitals, medical research, community events, youth organisations, the arts, sporting events and
organisations and recreational facilities.

A proportion of all profit generated by Tattersall's is passed back to the community through ongoing assistance to a range of community initiatives, sports, the arts and sponsorships.

In recent times, Tattersall's has donated close to $60 million to hospitals, charities, deserving individuals, sport and the community generally.