Business1 min read

New Flutter CEO bets on FanDuel promotions to win customers as profits suffer

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Dan Taylor is confronting early headwinds five weeks into his tenure after regulatory turmoil and high promotional costs weighed down third-quarter results. The company reported a $1.15 billion quarterly net loss, driven primarily by an $873 million impairment following Brazil's September ban on sports betting and online gaming. To stabilize the balance sheet, Flutter trimmed its full-year revenue outlook and halted share repurchases to focus on reducing debt. Management remains focused on long-term expansion, noting that about half of the U.S. population still does not have access to legal sports betting.

Key points

  • Leadership paused company share buybacks to direct capital toward organic business growth…: Leadership paused company share buybacks to direct capital toward organic business growth and debt reduction over the next two years.
  • Full-year revenue midpoint expectations were reduced by $300 million to $17.61 billion fo…: Full-year revenue midpoint expectations were reduced by $300 million to $17.61 billion following unfavorable sports outcomes and the Brazil market closure.
  • Executive leadership sees considerable domestic room for expansion because nearly half of…: Executive leadership sees considerable domestic room for expansion because nearly half of the United States population still lacks legal sports betting access.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Flutter's new CEO Dan Taylor is counting on better products and more generous customer rewards to help convert FanDuel's improving engagement into stronger profits.

Taylor's been at the helm for just five weeks and issued his first earnings report as CEO on Wednesday, with third-quarter revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization missing Wall Street's expectations.

The company's stock is down more than 60% year to date.

Yet Taylor says the company is now on the right track.

"We made some changes to the product," Taylor told CNBC in an interview. "Fundamentally, the way you win this business is by delighting customers, delivering the very best experiences and delivering to them in the way that they want, with the right overall proposition."

FanDuel also launched a nationwide rewards program in September that Taylor said has "resonated really, really well."

The early customer numbers are improving. Average monthly players on FanDuel's U.S. sportsbook rose 9% in the third quarter, while bet counts increased 15%, Taylor said.

Flutter's earnings release showed total U.S. average monthly players up 12%, including…

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