Benzinga - by Chris Katje, Benzinga Staff Writer.
A leader in the sports betting sector is listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Monday in a move that could bring more options to investors looking for exposure to the growing and highly competitive space.
What Happened: After being rumored for several years, Flutter Entertainment plc (NYSE:FLUT) is listing on the NYSE, a move that follows being available to investors as an OTC stock for years with the ticker PDYPY.
Flutter Entertainment is a leading global sports betting, online gaming and poker company with brands such as BetFair, Paddy Power, PokerStars, Sky Betting and TVG.
The company is also well-known as the majority owner of FanDuel, one of the largest U.S. sports betting companies. Fox Corporation (NASDAQ:FOX)(NASDAQ:FOXA) and Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD) also have ownership stakes in FanDuel.
Flutter is also listed on the London Stock Exchange with ticker FLTR. The company will move to make the NYSE listing its primary listing as soon as possible. The primary listing move will be submitted to shareholders later this year, with an expected change happening in the second or third quarter if approved.
The company recently reported fourth-quarter financial results. Revenue was up 15% year-over-year in the fourth quarter, including year-over-year increases of 13% and 19% for sports and gaming, respectively.
For the full fiscal year, revenue for Flutter was up 25% year-over-year, with 13% growth for sports and 19% growth for gaming on a year-over-year basis.
The company said FanDuel was the number one sportsbook in the U.S. with 43% gross revenue market share in the fourth quarter. Flutter reported U.S. revenue was up 19% year-over-year in the fourth quarter with four million average monthly players in the U.S.
For comparison, rival DraftKings Inc (NASDAQ:DKNG) reported 2.3 million average monthly unique paying customers at the end of its most recently reported third quarter.
Related Link: EXCLUSIVE: FanDuel Parent Flutter Gets Dual Listing, Giving Investors ‘Another Way To Gain Exposure’ To An Industry Leader
Why It's Important: The listing on the NYSE of Flutter Entertainment gives investors better access to a pure-play sports betting and gaming company.
Flutter's board of directors said the move to list on the NYSE could "unlock long-term strategic and capital market benefits."
"With our NYSE listing effective today, this is a pivotal moment for the Group as we make Flutter more accessible to U.S.-based investors and gain access to deeper capital markets. We believe a U.S. primary listing is the natural home for Flutter given FanDuel's #1 position in the U.S., a market which we expect to contribute the largest proportion of profits in the near future," Flutter CEO Peter Jackson said.
The listing on the NYSE could be a catalyst from Flutter years in the making.
"Flutter Entertainment's dual listing would allow the company to possibly ‘uplist' to a U.S. exchange, providing U.S. investors with another way to gain exposure to one of the industry leaders in sports betting and iGaming outside of an OTC," Roundhill Investments Chief Strategy Officer Dave Mazza previously told Benzinga.
Roundhill Investments launched the Roundhill Sports Betting & iGaming ETF (NYSE:BETZ) in 2020 as the first pure-play ETF for the sector. Flutter Entertainment is currently the largest holding of the ETF at 11.0%.
Stifel analyst Jeffrey A. Stantial recently upgraded shares of DraftKings from Hold to Buy and raised the price target from $40 to $45.
While Stantial was bullish on DraftKings, the analyst cautioned the impact the NYSE listing from Flutter could have.
"We've heard some investors call out risk of rotation from DraftKings into Flutter thereafter, arguing that DraftKings has benefitted from scarcity value as the sole U.S. listed operator of-scale," Stantial said.
The move to the NYSE comes as PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) launched ESPN Bet as a rebrand of its Barstool Sportsbook and Fanatics acquired the U.S. division of PointsBet to expand in the U.S. sports betting sector.
FanDuel and DraftKings remain the market leaders in the U.S. sports betting sector and investors may now be able to choose between them or invest in both thanks to the NYSE listing.
Important upcoming dates for Flutter include Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11 where the company's FanDuel unit will have a Super Bowl commercial featuring Rob Gronkowski and March 26 when the company will report its full-year financial numbers in U.S dollars and according to U.S. GAAP metrics while also providing guidance for 2024.
FLUT Price Action: Flutter shares are up 0.88% to $206.80 on Monday versus a 52-week trading range of $205 to $212. Shares of Flutter are up 30% over the last year.
NFL player and @FanDuel ambassador @RobGronkowski is used to Game Day feel but spiking the ball on the pitch outside the @NYSE is slightly different to what he's used to! #FlutterNYSEListed $FLUT pic.twitter.com/Wr7xojIxfa— Flutter plc (@FlutterPLC) January 29, 2024
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Photo: Courtesy Flutter Entertainment
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