By Kyle Morris
Entain PLC said Thursday that net gaming revenue rose in the fourth quarter, and narrowed earnings guidance range for 2021 as major markets performed well.
The gambling-and-betting company narrowed its guidance range for 2021 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to 875 million to 885 million pounds ($1.19 billion-$1.20 billion). With the release of its third-quarter results on Oct. 12, Entain had reaffirmed guidance for full-year Ebitda of GBP850 million to GBP900 million.
Group net gaming revenue increased 4% in the fourth quarter. Online net gaming revenue for the quarter fell 9%, ahead of expectations but down on year due to particularly strong comparatives, it said. Retail net gaming revenue for the fourth quarter was up 60% as most shops were open for the full period, with volumes returning to within 10% of pre-pandemic levels, it said.
For 2021, Entain sees group net gaming revenue up 7% and online net gaming revenue up 12%. Online net gaming revenue in Germany was hurt by the introduction of a new regulatory system, it said.
“We continue to see significant growth opportunities ahead of us, with a total addressable market of around $160 billion across our new and existing markets, as well as in emerging areas of interactive entertainment,” Chief Executive Jette Nygaard-Andersen said. “We believe these opportunities will enable us to at least treble the size of our business. As a result, we remain confident in our prospects for the year ahead and beyond.”
BetMGM–the joint venture in the U.S. with MGM Resorts–continues to perform strongly, with 2021 net gaming revenue of around $850 million, as announced yesterday. BetMGM expects net revenue from operations of more than $1.3 billion in 2022 and reaching positive Ebitda in 2023.
Shares in Entain at 0813 GMT were up 2.5 pence, or 0.2%, at 1,712 pence.
Write to Kyle Morris at kyle.morris@dowjones.com
