REG - Entain PLC - Q4 Trading Update

EntainAnnouncement

01/02/2023 07:00

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RNS Number : 4941O  Entain PLC  01 February 2023

For Release at 7.00am

1 February
2023

Entain plc

("Entain" or the "Group")

 

Record quarter for both online NGR and active customers, with actives up 14%

 

FY22 EBITDA now expected to be in the range of £985m - £995m, up c.12% year
on year and ahead of expectations

 

Entain plc (LSE: ENT), the global sports betting, gaming and interactive
entertainment group, today reports trading for the period from 1 October to 31
December 2022 ("Q4"), as well as for the financial year to 31 December 2022
("FY22").

 

Financial Highlights

·      Strong performance in Q4 with Group net gaming revenue ("NGR") up
11% (+7% cc(1))

o  Record Q4 Online NGR, up 12% (+8% cc(1)) year on year, reflects a
successful men's World Cup, partly offset by weather disruptions to sporting
fixtures

o  Continued growth in active customers in Q4, also at record levels, up 14%
versus the prior year

o  Q4 Retail NGR up 10%(2) (+9% cc(1,2)) with UK volumes driven by strong
growth in gaming and betting terminals

·      FY22 Group NGR up 12% (+10% cc(1))

o  Including the 50% share of BetMGM joint venture in the US, FY22 Group NGR
was up 15% cc(1)

o  FY22 Online NGR down 1% (-2% cc(1)), reflecting strong Covid comparators
and the absorption of regulatory changes, particularly in the UK and Germany

o  Strong progress on the strategic broadening of customer appeal with the
number of active customers up 7% year on year

o  FY22 Retail NGR up 66%(2) (+66% cc(1,2)), with volumes ahead of pre-Covid
levels, market share gains and a broadening customer base

·      FY22 Group EBITDA expected to be in the range of £985m - £995m,
ahead of previous expectations(3) and representing growth of c.12% versus the
prior year

o  SuperSport acquisition in Croatia, completed on 23 November 2022,
contributed £8m to FY22 EBITDA

·      BetMGM, the Group's joint venture in the US, continues to perform
strongly.  As reported on 26 January 2022 (Link
(https://entaingroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/BetMGM-Business-Update-ENT-vFinal.pdf)
):

o  FY22 NGR of $1.44bn up 71% year on year, ahead of expectations(4)

§ 51% growth in online NGR, on same state basis

o  19%(5,6) share in sports-betting and iGaming in the markets where BetMGM
operates

o  iGaming market leadership position maintained with 30%(5,6) market share

o  On target to be EBITDA positive in H2 2023

o  Long term objectives of 20-25% market share and 30-35% EBITDA margin,
remain unchanged

 

Operational highlights

·      Completed SuperSport acquisition in Croatia, driving further
growth and geographic diversity through the recently established Entain CEE

·      Completion of BetCity acquisition in January 2023 secures access
to the attractive and fast-growing Netherlands market

·      BetMGM's ongoing success, including recent launches in Maryland,
Ohio and Massachusetts, product and functionality developments as well as
sportsbook app redesign, continue to be underpinned by the Entain Platform's
unique operational excellence

·      Launch of UNIKRN in esports betting and skill-based wagering;
soft launches in Brazil and Canada with further launches planned for 2023

·      Continued progress on ESG initiatives under our Sustainability
Charter

o  Accelerated exit of unregulated markets as announced on 18 January 2023
(Link
(https://tools.eurolandir.com/tools/Pressreleases/GetPressRelease/?ID=4230537&lang=en-GB&companycode=lu-gvc&v=redesign)
); Entain is the only global operator with 100% of revenues from domestically
regulated or regulating markets

o  ARC(TM) ("Advanced Responsibility & Care") programme extended to 22
international markets, and achieved milestone of one million proactive
interactions

o  Initiative launched in collaboration with McLaren Racing to support women
in tech-based careers

 

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

"2022 has been another year of strong financial, operational and strategic
progress for Entain. We have continued to grow our revenues in a sustainable
and diversified way by expanding our global footprint, broadening our customer
appeal, entering new areas of entertainment, and providing a safe environment
for our customers. All of this has led to a record number of active customers
in Q4, as well as a full year EBITDA performance ahead of our previous
expectations.

We have started 2023 with good momentum across the business and remain
confident in our ability to continue delivering on our growth and
sustainability strategy in the year ahead."

 

                                     Q4: 1 October to 31 December 2022
               Total     Total       3yr CAGR Total NGR cc(1)           Sport Wagers  Sport Wagers cc(1)  Sports Margin

               NGR       NGR cc(1)

 Online
    Sports     13%       7%          14%                                2%            (2%)                +1.0pp
    Gaming     13%       10%         11%
 Total Online  12%       8%          12%

 Retail(2)     10%       9%          flat                               15%           14%                 (1.0pp)

 Total Group   11%       7%          7%

 

                                     Full Year: 1 January to 31 December 2022
               Total     Total       3yr CAGR Total NGR cc(1)             Sport Wagers  Sport Wagers cc(1)  Sports Margin

               NGR       NGR cc(1)

 Online
    Sports     flat      (2%)        15%                                  (1%)          (3%)                +0.2pp
    Gaming     (1%)      (3%)        10%
 Total Online  (1%)      (2%)        12%

 Retail(2)     66%       66%         1%                                   68%           68%                 +0.2pp

 Total Group   12%       10%         6%

 

Notes

(1)      Growth on a constant currency basis calculated by translating
2022 and 2021 performances at 2022 exchange rates

(2)      Retail operates in UK, Italy, Belgium, Republic of Ireland and
Croatia.  During Q4 2022, there were an average of 4,332 shops/outlets in the
estate including Croatia, compared to an average of 4,425 during Q4 2021.
Retail performance numbers are quoted on a LFL basis and therefore exclude the
post-acquisition performance of shops in Croatia.

(3)      Guidance as reiterated at Q3 trading update on 13 October 2022
of FY22 EBITDA of £925m-£975m

(4)      BetMGM guidance on FY22 NGR of over $1.3bn, as stated at
Business Update on 19 January 2022

(5)      BetMGM revenues comprise of sports betting (Online and Retail)
and iGaming revenues

(6)      Three month period to October 2022, in markets in which BetMGM
operates

 

 

Enquiries:

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

 David Lloyd-Seed, Chief IR & Communications Officer       david.lloyd-seed@entaingroup.com (mailto:david.lloyd-seed@entaingroup.com)

 Davina Hobbs, Head of Investor Relations                  davina.hobbs@entaingroup.com (mailto:davina.hobbs@entaingroup.com)

 Callum Sims, IR Manager                                   callum.sims@entaingroup.com (mailto:callum.sims@entaingroup.com)

 Media - Entain plc                                        media@entaingroup.com (mailto:media@entaingroup.com)

 Lisa Attenborough, Head of Corporate Communications       lisa.attenborough@entaingroup.com (mailto:lisa.attenborough@entaingroup.com)

 Jay Dossetter, Head of Corporate PR                       jay.dossetter@entaingroup.com (mailto:jay.dossetter@entaingroup.com)

 Jodie Hitch, PR Manager                                   Jodie.hitch@entaingroup.com (mailto:Jodie.hitch@entaingroup.com)

 Powerscourt                                               Tel: +44 (0) 20 7250 1446

 Rob Greening/Nick Hayns/Sam Austrums                      entain@powersco (mailto:entain@powerscourt-.com) urt-group.com
                                                           (mailto:entain@powerscourt-.com)

 

 

Q4 Conference Call & Webcast

An analyst call will be held today, Wednesday 1(st) February 2023 9:00am
(GMT).

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://kvgo.com/IJLO/Entain_2022_Q4_Trading_Update
(https://kvgo.com/IJLO/Entain_2022_Q4_Trading_Update)

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

UK                            +44 (0)33 0551 0200

US                            + 1 866 580 3963

Access Code:         Quote "Entain" when prompted by operator

 

A replay of the presentation and transcript will be available on our website:

https://entaingroup.com/investor-relations/results-centre/
(https://entaingroup.com/investor-relations/results-centre/)

 

Upcoming dates:

Full Year Results:
                9 March 2023

Q1 Trading
Update
19 April 2023

Interim
Results
10 August 2023

 

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 BetCity, bwin, Coral, Crystalbet, Eurobet, Ladbrokes, Neds,
Sportingbet, Sports Interaction and SuperSport; Gaming brands include Foxy
Bingo, Gala, GiocoDigitale, 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 50/50 joint venture, BetMGM, a leader in sports betting and
iGaming in the US. Entain provides the technology and capabilities which power
BetMGM as well as exclusive games and products, specially developed at its
in-house gaming studios. The Group is tax resident in the UK, operating in
over 40 regulated or regulating territories. 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
(http://www.entaingroup.com)

LEI: 213800GNI3K45LQR8L28

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