Adverse sports results hit Entain

Ladbrokes owner Entain posted a drop in third-quarter revenues on Thursday, but said it remained on track to return to growth in 2024.

The blue chip, which also owns Coral, bwin, Foxy Bingo and Gala, among others, said net gaming revenues (NGR) excluding the US fell 5% on a proforma basis in the three months to 30 September.

Within that, online NGR were down 6%, while retail eased 4%. Entain has retail operations in the UK, mainland Europe and New Zealand.

It also has a 50:50 joint venture in the US with sports betting and iGaming specialist BetMGM. Reported BetMGM revenues rose 8%, or 15% on a constant currency basis.

Entain said there had been a 2 to 3 percentage point impact from "customer-friendly results" in September, although active customers had grown by 10% on a proforma basis during the quarter.

Looking to the current quarter, Entain said customer-friendly results had continued in October. "While volumes have been in line with expectations, continued customer-friendly results have seen sports margins impact EBITDA by around £45m," it noted.

However, it left its long-term targets for 2024 unchanged. It is currently forecasting low single digit proforma online NGR growth following a return to growth during the second half.

Jette Nygaard-Anderson, chief executive, said: "Entain has undergone a profound transformation over the last few years, and now has strong foundations to move into its next phase of growth.

"We have a clear plan to focus our portfolio for organic growth, drive our market share in the US, improve our operational leverage and increase our EBITDA margins."

As at 0845 BST, shares in the firm were down 5% at 890.8p.