, owner of Ladbrokes, increased its expected earnings for the full-year as it confirmed its revenues increased during Q2 on the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.){kind=link}
Entain’s growth in the US hinges on regulation opening up on a state-by-state basis
Entain (LON:ENT), owner of Ladbrokes, increased its expected earnings for the full-year as it confirmed its revenues increased during Q2 on the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.
The FTSE 100 company said re-opened store volumes increased to just 10% below pre-pandemic levels, during the six month period from 1 January to 30 June.
Throughout the UK’s national lockdowns, Entain’s revenues were hit badly, however, the company said there has been ‘encouraging’ signs across retail as restrictions have been eased.
“Our platform provides us with a significant opportunity to align our business better with our customers and increasingly deliver a wider breadth of exciting products, content and experiences as the worlds of media, entertainment and gaming converge,” CEO Jette Nygaard-Anderson said.
“Over the last 4 years, Entain has been aggressively pursuing an acquisition strategy. Although its most recent offer for Tabcorp was rejected, Entain looks likely to table additional offers as it seeks to grow inorganically,” said Harry Barnick, Senior Analyst at Third Bridge.
“Whilst all eyes are on Entain’s potential acquisition targets, Entain itself may be back in the cross-hairs of MGM. Our experts say that once some froth has come off the market it is more a matter of when, rather than if, another bid is made for the sports betting and gambling company,” Barnick added.
Entain’s growth in the US hinges on regulation opening up on a state-by-state basis. New York looks promising but California remains challenging due to its strong tribal ties.
“The major operators, including Entain, Fandual and Draftkings are buying market share in the US to drive growth. They are haemorrhaging cash in the fiercely competitive market. The partnership with MGM helps Entain with these costs in the US because of access to better technology which can improve cost per acquisition.”
“Although Entain benefits from its proprietary stack in the US, BetMGM suffers from weaker branding when compared to peers like Fandual and Draftkings, which are both well established in the US market.”