By Ian Walker
Flutter Entertainment, the prominent gambling and betting group, has announced a significant increase in pretax profit for the first half of the year. This growth can be attributed to the profitability reached by its U.S. business, which has reached a turning point. The company has also reiterated its full-year guidance.
For the six-month period ending on June 30, pretax profit amounted to £82.7 million ($105.4 million), a marked improvement from the loss of £51.4 million recorded during the same period last year. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also experienced substantial growth, rising to £823 million compared to £476 million in the previous year. These figures exceed the consensus of £762.7 million according to FactSet.
The company’s revenue for the year also experienced a significant increase, reaching £4.81 billion compared to £3.39 billion in the previous year. This surpassed the FactSet consensus of £4.70 billion. Notably, the U.S. market played a crucial role in driving revenue growth, with a notable increase of 71% to £1.80 billion. Revenue from the U.K. and Ireland also saw an uptick from £1.09 billion to £1.24 billion.
Flutter Entertainment predicts that its U.S. net revenue for the year will range between £3.6 billion and £3.9 billion, with adjusted EBITDA expected to fall within the range of £90 million to £190 million. The company’s U.S. EBITDA for the first half of the year reached £49 million, a significant improvement compared to a loss of £132 million in the prior year.
In conclusion, Flutter Entertainment has achieved impressive profit growth in the first half of the year, primarily driven by its U.S. business. The company remains optimistic about its full-year performance.
