SkyCity said it raised its normalised net profit by 10.4 per cent to $169.9 million for the year to June, ahead of market expectations and its own guidance.
"We are happy with that," SkyCity chief executive Graeme Stephens told the Herald.
"That's really a function of a strong finish in May and June, with the international business in particular leading the charge on that.
"It [the VIP market] is a harder part of the market to predict - it's a bit more volatile - so it did come in a bit stronger than we anticipated.
"It was quite specific to our international VIP gamblers - the gamblers that we fly into our properties.
"Sometimes they say they are coming then don't, but everyone who said they were coming came, plus a couple more.
"That part of the business has recovered very strongly from being quite down in the previous year".
The international VIP business has recovered strongly from a "challenging" 2017, achieving turnover of $11.9b, up 39.2 per cent, and record normalised EBITDA of $32.6m, up 71.2 per cent.
Stephens said in a statement the result reflects both the recovery of the sector across Asia-Pacific and the performance of the company's restructured international business team.
"We've seen more visits from our major customers, and an increased use of third-party junket operators which led to a record six-month turnover in the second half of the financial year.
"We've managed to increase our margins due to operating efficiencies and low bad debts."
SkyCity shares last traded at $4.08, up 8c from Tuesday's close.
