The acquisition of Stars Group by Flutter Entertainment has significantly expanded their operations and diversified their portfolio. This strategic move proved beneficial in navigating the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic during the initial half of the year.
However, the costs associated with the Stars Group acquisition have negatively impacted their profitability, resulting in a substantial decline in net earnings for the period.
Their revenue for the six-month period ending June 30th witnessed a 49% increase compared to the same period in the previous year, reaching £1.52 billion. When adjusted to incorporate six months of income from Stars Group (rather than solely from the date of acquisition on May 5th) and factoring in the performance of Adjarabet (acquired in February 2019), their revenue rose by 21% to €2.4 billion.
Prior to the onset of the pandemic, specifically before mid-March, Flutter’s acquisitions and core businesses were performing well, exhibiting a 26% growth in revenue.
Throughout this period, Sky Betting & Gaming achieved remarkable success, with FanDuel expanding its presence in the United States, introducing an online casino in Pennsylvania, and establishing retail betting operations in Michigan and Mississippi.
However, commencing in the middle of March, the COVID-19 pandemic had a substantial impact on Flutter’s sports and retail enterprises, particularly in Europe, where all major sporting events, including horse racing in the United Kingdom and Ireland, were halted. This situation was somewhat mitigated as Australian and some US horse racing continued behind closed doors, attracting a larger audience in the absence of other sporting content.
Flutter’s Chief Executive Officer, Peter Jackson, stated: “The Group’s financial performance in the first six months of the year surpassed expectations as we benefited from geographical and product diversification.” “Prior to the disruptions associated with COVID-19, our business was thriving, with robust customer growth and positive sports outcomes. Since then, the cancellation of sporting events and store closures have resulted in a decrease in sports revenue in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
“Nevertheless, this was counterbalanced by an increase in the number of global leisure customers participating in our poker and gaming offerings as individuals sought novel ways to entertain themselves at home. In Australia and the United States, the continuation of horse racing meant that overall sports revenue rose in these regions.”
Despite the disruption to sports betting across all channels, there was “significant expansion” in the number of poker and casino participants.
PokerStars witnessed a 70% surge in daily average gaming patrons in the second quarter, despite reduced marketing expenditures, while Paddy Power Betfair and Sky Betting & Gaming enterprises observed a 65% leap in daily active gaming users during the same period.
Following the return of sporting events in May, Flutter reported that customer engagement has been “heartening”. For Sky Bet, customer figures have rebounded to typical levels, aided by a busy English football schedule, while Paddy Power was the most downloaded application during Royal Ascot, due to a substantial number of customer promotions. Meanwhile, gaming has remained “robust” across all its brands.
This contributed to revenue growth in both sectors, both on a reported and adjusted basis. On a reported basis, sports betting revenue increased 16% year-over-year to £924 million, while gaming contributed £598 million for the first half, up 165% compared to the first half of 2019.
On an adjusted basis, sports revenue expanded 7% to £1.2 billion (8% at constant currency), while gaming grew 39% to £1.19 billion.
In terms of divisional performance, Paddy Power Betfair (including Paddy Power, Betfair and Adjarabet online brands, as well as UK and Ireland retail outlets) experienced a 38% decrease in adjusted stake to £2.22 billion. This resulted in £320 million in sports revenue, down 29%, on a net revenue margin of 10.9% (up 200 basis points). Gaming contributed another £220 million, up 5%.
Online betting revenue declined 21% to £264 million, while retail sports stakes fell 51% to £56 million.
The online gaming industry experienced an 18% surge in earnings, reaching £197 million, while physical sales dwindled to £23 million.
Simultaneously, Sky Betting & Gaming, an exclusively online platform, witnessed a 30% decline in wagering activity, settling at £1.64 billion. Nevertheless, favorable outcomes for the bookmaker, coupled with patrons placing bets on less conventional sports during the suspension of major events, propelled the sports net revenue margin to 14.8%, resulting in a 36% increase in betting earnings, reaching £253 million.
Gaming contributed £186 million, a 27% rise, signifying a 2% growth in Sky Betting & Gaming’s overall revenue to £439 million during the first half of the year.
PokerStars, encompassing the brand’s poker, casino, and sports offerings, alongside Full Tilt, saw a 40% increase in revenue, reaching £697 million. Gaming revenue climbed 43% to £671 million, driven by a 38% surge in poker revenue and a 51% improvement in casino contributions. However, sports betting stakes decreased by 21% to £308 million, with revenue dropping 9% to £27 million.
Flutter highlighted that the division particularly benefited from the COVID-19 restrictions. Prior to the outbreak in mid-March, PokerStars’ gaming revenue had been down 3% year-on-year, and if this trend had persisted for six months, the vertical would have contributed £205 million less.
Shifting focus to Australia, which encompasses the Sportsbet and BetEasy brands, the continuous operation of local horse racing, albeit without spectators, significantly boosted the division’s performance during the first half of the year. Wagers increased by 12% to £3.72 billion, with the net revenue margin improving from 9.5% to 11.7%, leading to a 39% surge in revenue, reaching £435 million.
In conclusion, the American division, which encompasses the FanDuel, FoxBet, TVG, PokerStars, and Betfair brands, witnessed a 71% surge in revenue, reaching £278 million.
This expansion was propelled by the substantial growth of the online sports wagering market, with operations spanning five American states, and horse racing continuing behind closed doors. Consequently, wagers rose by 26% to £1.09 billion, generating revenue of £164 million at a 4.9% margin, a 14% increase.
The American business also benefited from consumers substituting gaming with betting in states such as New Jersey and Pennsylvania, leading to a significant rise in contribution from this sector, from £23 million to £113 million.
The division’s cost of goods sold for the month reached £497.9 million, a 65% year-over-year increase, including a £10.3 million refund of VAT incorrectly paid on gaming machines in the UK. Gross profit climbed to £1.04 billion, a 44% increase.
Operating expenses, excluding depreciation and amortization but encompassing trading and related costs, as well as restructuring and integration costs, increased by 50% to £753.7 million. This resulted in a 32% increase in EBITDA, reaching £2.845 billion.
After accounting for £216.7 million in depreciation and amortization charges, Flutter’s operating profit declined year-over-year to £67.8 million due to the amortization of acquired intangible assets. Excluding exceptional items from both the current and prior period, operating profit would have increased by 73% to £2.528 billion.
Following a £49 million financial gain.
Earnings reached £600 million, while expenditures expanded to £934 million, again due to separately revealed items, which brought pre-tax profits down to £24 million. The company did record a £14 million tax advantage for these items, which helped to partially balance the £29.1 million income tax paid on operations, ultimately resulting in a net profit of £9 million, considerably lower than the £67.6 million recorded in the initial six months of 2019.
Looking forward, the company stated that trading in the latter half was encouraging, driven by a condensed football schedule, favorable sports outcomes, and sustained robust performance in gaming, despite increased wagering choices available to customers.
However, it added that the future remains highly uncertain due to the possibility of further disruption from Covid-19, as well as potential regulatory alterations in key markets.
Assuming it does not encounter disruption on the scale of the initial six months, the company anticipates EBITDA (excluding the US) to be between £1.18 billion and £1.33 billion this year. This reflects an increased marketing investment of £50 million in the latter half, as well as enhanced responsible gambling and anti-money laundering measures being implemented for PokerStars.
For the US business, the company anticipates EBITDA losses to be between £140 million and £160 million. This presumes online betting launches in Tennessee and Michigan in the latter half, and Illinois permits remote registration throughout the six months.
The latter half of the year commenced robustly, with sports wagering performing exceptionally well as significant sporting events returned. Wagering remains vigorous, Jackson stated.
Looking forward, we perceive promising opportunities to invest further in diverse facets of our enterprise. Despite the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, our company’s diversified operations instill confidence in our future prospects.
Image: Flutter.com
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