REG - Entain PLC - Q4 Trading Update

EntainAnnouncement

20/01/2022 07:05

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RNS Number : 0209Z  Entain PLC  20 January 2022

20 January
2022

Entain plc

("Entain" or the "Group")

 

Strong 2021 performance evidences Entain's high growth dynamics

FY21 EBITDA expected to be in the range of £875m - £885m, ahead of previous
expectations

 

Entain plc (LSE: ENT), the global sports-betting and gaming entertainment
group, today reports trading for the period from 1 October to 31 December 2021
("Q4"), as well as for the financial year to 31 December 2021 ("FY21").

 

Financial Highlights

·      Strong FY21 performance with Group net gaming revenue ("NGR") up
7% (+8% cc(1)) year on year

o  FY21 Online NGR up 12% (+13% cc(1)), demonstrating consistent ability of
our operating model to deliver diversified and sustainable growth

o  Strong growth in all major markets with FY21 Online NGR up 18% (+20%
cc(1)) excluding Germany, where the new regulatory regime is impacting the
market

o  Online growth continues to be actives driven, with actives up 25% year on
year

o  Retail NGR down 3%(4) (-3% cc(1, 4)), reflecting more Covid-19
restrictions than the prior year

o  Including 50% share of BetMGM joint venture, Group FY21 NGR(2) was up 14%
(15% cc(1))

·      Robust performance in Q4 with group Q4 NGR up 4% (+6% cc(1))

o  Q4 Online NGR down 9% (-6% cc(1)), ahead of expectations albeit down
versus the prior year due to particularly strong comparatives

o  With most shops open for the full period, Q4 NGR in Retail was up 60%(4)
(+62% cc(1,)(4)) year on year with volumes returning to within 10%(4) of
pre-Covid levels

·      FY21 Group EBITDA(5) expected to be in the range of £875m -
£885m, ahead of previous expectations

·      BetMGM (the Group's joint venture in the US with MGM Resorts)
continues to perform strongly, with FY21 NGR of approximately $850m(2, 6), up
nearly 5 times versus the prior year, as announced yesterday

o  24%(3) share in sports-betting and iGaming in the markets in which BetMGM
operates for the three months to November

o  iGaming market leadership position maintained with 30%(3) market share

o  BetMGM expects net revenue from operations of over $1.3bn in 2022 and
anticipates reaching positive EBITDA in 2023

 

Operational highlights

·      Additional investment of £25m(7) in New Opportunities business
segment in 2022 to support the launch of first esports skill-based wagering
products during 2022

·      Continued progress on ESG initiatives under our Sustainability
Charter

o  Entain Foundation launched EnTrain, a new multi-million-pound global
initiative to increase access to technology and improve diversity

o  ARC ("Advanced Responsibility & Care") programme continues to progress
well, with real-time customer interaction trials underway, along with initial
stages of international rollout

o  Entain was named Socially Responsible Operator of the Year at the SBC
Awards North America, as well as EGR Operator of the Year

o  Entain continues to be the only online-led gaming company included in the
Dow Jones Sustainability Indices, in addition to its continued inclusion in
the FTSE4Good index

 

Jette Nygaard-Andersen, Entain's CEO, commented:

"2021 has been a successful and eventful period for Entain, and our
market-leading platform has driven another year of strong, sustainable and
diversified growth. All of our major markets have performed well.  BetMGM,
our hugely exciting business in the US, has been a particular highlight with
FY21 net gaming revenue ahead of expectations and an upgraded outlook for
2022.

We have also made significant operational progress and have continued to
provide our customers with even better content, experiences and excitement as
the worlds of media, entertainment, technology and gaming converge.

As ever, our sustainability efforts have been at the core of everything that
we do. We have continued to lead the way in the critically important area of
player protection, and our technology-based Advanced Responsibility and Care
programme is progressing well.

We continue to see significant growth opportunities ahead of us, with a total
addressable market of around $160bn across our new and existing markets, as
well as in emerging areas of interactive entertainment.  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."

 

               Q4: 1 October to 31 December 2021
               Total NGR  Total NGR cc(1)  2yr CAGR      Sports Wagers  Sport Wagers cc(1)  Sports Margin

Total NGR

 

 Online
 Sports        (14%)      (12%)            17%           (1%)           2%                  (1.7pp)
 Gaming        (4%)       (2%)             11%
 Total Online  (9%)       (6%)             14%

 Retail(4)     60%        62%              (4%)          75%            77%                 (4.4pp)

 Total Group   4%         6%               6%

 

 

 

 

                                    Full Year: 1 January to 31 December 2021
                                    Total NGR  Total NGR cc(1)  2yr CAGR      Sports Wagers  Sport Wagers cc(1)  Sports Margin

Total NGR

 

 Online
 Sports                             21%        22%              22%           20%            21%                 +0.0pp
 Gaming                             4%         6%               16%
 Total Online                       12%        13%              19%

 Retail(4)                          (3%)       (3%)             (21%)         (10%)          (9%)                (1.3pp)

 Total Group                        7%         8%               3%

 Total Group inc BetMGM(2,8) share  14%        15%              7%

 

Notes

(1)      Growth on a constant currency basis is calculated by translating
both 2021 and 2020 performance at the 2021 exchange rates

(2)      BetMGM revenues comprise of sports (Online and Retail) and
iGaming revenues and are not yet finalised for 2021

(3)      BetMGM market shares for the three month period to November 2021

(4)      Retail operates in UK, Italy, Belgium and Republic of Ireland.
Retail numbers are quoted on a LFL basis. During Q4, there were an average of
4,425 shops/outlets in the estate, compared to an average of 4,679 for the
same period last year. In the full year, there were an average of 4,540 shops
in the estate, compared to an average of 4,727 in the same period last year.

(5)      Guidance on EBITDA is on a post IFRS 16 basis

(6)      2021 net revenue for BetMGM on a GAAP basis is expected to be
approximately $813 million, which includes approximately $52 million related
to Nevada MGM operations for which BetMGM records on a net basis as BetMGM is
considered to be the agent in the Nevada transactions for GAAP purposes

(7)      Combined total EBITDA investment in New Opportunities including
innovation of £50m for FY2022

(8)      Total Group including BetMGM includes 50% share of BetMGM
revenues

 

 

Enquiries:

 Investor Relations - Entain plc                                         investors@entaingroup.com (mailto:investors@entaingroup.com)

 David Lloyd-Seed, Group Director of IR & Corporate Communications       david.lloyd-seed@entaingroup.com (mailto:david.lloyd-seed@entaingroup.com)

 Davina Hobbs, Head of Investor Relations

 Callum Sims, Investor Relations Manager                                 davina.hobbs@entaingroup.com (mailto:davina.hobbs@entaingroup.com)

                                                                         callum.sims@entaingroup.com
 Media - Entain plc                                                      media@entaingroup.com

 Tessa Curtis, Head of Group PR & Media Relations                        tessa.curtis@entaingroup.com (mailto:tessa.curtis@entaingroup.com)

 Jay Dossetter, Head of ESG and Press Office                             jay.dossetter@entaingroup.com (mailto:jay.dossetter@entaingroup.com)
 Media - Powerscourt                                                     Tel: +44 (0) 20 7250 1446

 Rob Greening / Elly Williamson / Nick Hayns                             entain@powerscourt-group.com

 

 

 

 

Q4 Conference Call & Webcast

An analyst call will be held today, Thursday 20(th) January 2022 at 9:00am UK
(10:00am BST).

Participants may join via webcast or by conference call dial in, approximately
10 minutes before the start of the call.

Live audio webcast link: https://brrmedia.news/ENT_Q4
(https://brrmedia.news/ENT_Q4)

To participate in the Q&A, please also connect via the conference call
dial in details.

UK:                          +44 (0)33 0336 9601

US:                           +1 646 828 8073

Access Code:            4458668

A replay and call transcript will be available on our website:
https://entaingroup.com/investor-relations/results-centre/
(https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fentaingroup.com%2Finvestor-relations%2Fresults-centre%2F&data=04%7C01%7CDavina.Hobbs%40entaingroup.com%7Cb32ef304a1c143a347b108d8f9a6c213%7C60c43c0a64ac4050bf3e31e1cdfffdeb%7C0%7C0%7C637533842631221669%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=exRCE8M4fac2VFZ9ViQFfKGQl5vTXIv0SId5UKGCnWw%3D&reserved=0)

 

Upcoming dates:

FY21 Results:                        3 March 2022

Q1 Trading Update:               7 April 2022

BetMGM CMD:                     May 2022

 

Forward-looking statements

This document contains certain statements that are forward-looking statements.
They appear in a number of places throughout this document and include
statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations and those
of our officers, directors and employees concerning, amongst other things,
results of our operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth,
strategies and the business we operate. These forward-looking statements
include all matters that are not historical facts. By their nature, these
statements involve risks and uncertainties since future events and
circumstances can cause results and developments to differ materially from
those anticipated. Any such forward-looking statements reflect knowledge and
information available at the date of preparation of this document. Other than
in accordance with its legal or regulatory obligations (including under the
Market Abuse Regulation (596/2014), the Listing Rules, the Disclosure Guidance
and Transparency Rules and the Prospectus Rules), the Company undertakes no
obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements. Nothing in
this document should be construed as a profit forecast. The Company and its
directors accept no liability to third parties in respect of this document
save as would arise under English law.

 

About Entain plc

Entain plc (LSE: ENT) is a FTSE100 company and is one of the world's largest
sports-betting and gaming groups, operating both online and in the retail
sector. The Group owns a comprehensive portfolio of established brands; Sports
Brands include bwin, Bet.pt, Coral, Crystalbet, Eurobet, Ladbrokes, Neds and
Sportingbet; Gaming Brands include CasinoClub, Foxy Bingo, Gala, Gioco
Digitale, Ninja Casino, Optibet, partypoker and PartyCasino. The Group owns
proprietary technology across all its core product verticals and in addition
to its B2C operations provides services to a number of third-party customers
on a B2B basis.

The Group has a joint-venture with MGM Resorts International creating a
leader, BetMGM, in sports-betting and iGaming in the US. Entain provides the
technology which powers BetMGM and exclusive games and products, specially
developed at its in-house gaming studios. The Group is tax resident in the UK
with licenses in a total of 27 regulated markets. Entain is a leader in ESG, a
member of FTSE4Good, the DJSI and is AA rated by MSCI. The Group has set a
science-based target, committing to be carbon net zero by 2035 and through the
Entain Foundation supports a variety of initiatives, focusing on safer
gambling, grassroots sport, diversity in technology and community projects.

For more information see the Group's website: www.entaingroup.com

 

LEI: 213800GNI3K45LQR8L28

 

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