Flutter profit falls after run of customer-friendly results

The owner of Paddy Power's adjusted pro forma pretax profit dropped 22% to £620m at constant currency from a year earlier as revenue rose 17% to £6.04bn.

Adjusted earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation fell 10% to £1.24bn - at the bottom of reduced guidance published in November.

The FTSE 100 group posted a £288m statutory pretax loss after a £543m charge for acquired intangibles. said it suffered an "unprecedented run" of customer-friendly sports results cost it £232m in revenue in the UK and Ireland, including £149m in the fourth quarter. Customers also pursued other leisure activities when Covid-19 restrictions were relaxed and regulations were tightened.

The company also said it was monitoring the situation in Russia and Ukraine closely. Russia contributed £41m in 2021 and Ukraine was £19m.

Shares of Flutter fell 9.6% to £97.54 and were the biggest losers in the FTSE 100 index.

Flutter said trading in the first seven weeks of 2022 was in line with expectations with group revenue up 2%. If sports results return to normal, revenue growth will accelerated during 2022, the company said.

Flutter's US business more than doubled to £1.4bn as the company spent more than $1bn on marketing and promotions. The company wants to capitalise on relaxation of betting rules in US states.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "Quite apart from the escalating costs which the company is allocating to further US customer acquisition, the spectre of regulation in the UK still looms large. Challenging Covid comparatives, consumers spending time on other leisure activities following the easing of restrictions and a slew of customer-friendly sports results have all contributed to a difficult time."

Flutter posted a £288m statutory pretax loss after a £543m charge for acquired intangibles.

Peter Jackson, Flutter's chief executive, said: "Overall, I am pleased with the progress we have made during 2021 and believe Flutter is exceptionally well positioned for future growth."