- The group reported ‘operator friendly’ results in the broader business
Entain shares rose on Monday after the gambling giant upgraded profit guidance, despite its US business suffering ‘customer friendly’ sports results in the fourth quarter.
The group, which operates the Coral, Ladbrokes and Bwin brands, told investors it expects earnings for 2024 to come in ‘at the top of’ a £1.04billion to £1.09billion guidance range.
Entain cited ‘operator friendly sports results’ in its broader global business over the period.
The group owns the BetMGM brand in the US, where rival Flutter was also hit by punter friendly sports results in the final three months of last year.
Nevertheless, the group continues to expect BetMGM to report a full-year EBITDA loss of around $250million when it confirms its results early next month.
Entain shares topped the FTSE 100 in early trading, rising as much as 9 per cent before settling to trade 2.1 per cent higher at 637.2p by mid-morning. The shares are down more than 30 per cent over the last 12 months.
Coral owner cheers ‘operator friendly’ sports results in fourth quarter of 2024
The group’s progress has been stunted by slower-than-hoped US growth, while a series of regulatory headwinds and the potential for a £3billion industry tax under Britain’s new Labour government also haven’t helped.
Entain will report its full-year results on 6 March.
Analysts at Shore Capital maintained a buy rating and an Entain target price at 624p.
They said the timing of Entain’s statement is ‘likely to have been in response to recent share price weakness’ adding that the group’s valuation metrics ‘appear too low, given the building momentum and structural growth opportunities’.
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