Flutter Ent Share Chat (FLTR)

Here is the requested article:

Murdoch’s Fox poised to take FanDuel off air in Flutter row

Fox last week launched legal action in New York against Flutter, the operator behind Sky Bet, Paddy Power and Betfair

By
Oliver Gill
10 April 2021 • 8:00pm
Texas Rangers play the Toronto Blue Jays.
Crowds are returning to North American sport. The industry is opening up to gambling, too. CREDIT: Jeffrey McWhorter/AP
Rupert Murdoch is primed to impose an advertising blackout of America’s most popular sports betting brand if its British owner refuses to back down in a bitter legal row.

FanDuel, which is owned by FTSE 100 bookmaker Flutter Entertainment, risks being taken off the air by FoxSports, America’s second-biggest sports television network, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt.

The threat comes at a time when advertising is playing a key role in allowing operators to grab a toehold in what is expected to be the world’s biggest regulated market.

If followed through, it would mark a significant escalation of a row that erupted last week between Fox Corporation and Flutter.

Fox last week launched legal action in New York against Flutter, the operator behind Sky Bet, Paddy Power and Betfair, in a row over FanDuel, which has a 40pc share of the US market.

Fox has an option to buy an 18.6pc stake in FanDuel in July. It claims it is entitled to pay the same price that Flutter paid in December, when the London-listed operator acquired the shares of FanDuel that it did not own at the time.

But Flutter claims it must pay the “fair market value” in July and has alleged that Fox is trying to secure a “windfall” by buying the shares at a lower price.

One insider said that Fox’s preference was to resolve the dispute. However, if it could not be resolved, Fox would focus on advertising its own brand, FoxBet, instead of promoting FanDuel. Sources close to Flutter claimed that Fox had realised it has backed the wrong horse. Fox and Flutter declined to comment.

Thanks very much, Longview. I don't suppose you have a sub with the Torygraph, do you? They had an article on Saturday, with a lively headline suggesting that Foxbet was attempting to make life difficult for FanDuel by banning advertising somewhere. But I couldn't get past the paywall.

The link to the requested info is here:
https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN2BU0X4
but there is no more details than was copied by Khunter:

"...London-listed shares in Flutter were down 1.6% at 155 pounds at 0830 GMT, having earlier traded as low as 151.25.

Separately, a bookrunner said a Flutter shareholder was selling about 2.3 mln shares at a 2.8% discount to Tuesday’s close, or 153.50 pounds per share.

Reporting by Graham Fahy; editing by Jason Neely, Kirsten Donovan..."

No other press seems to have any handle on this either, nor any RNS announcement.

This mocking parody on the classic 'starter's orders' for the Indianapolis 500 has always summed up business in the USA. Given that the members of the Murdoch family are practically down to their last $10 billion, it was to be expected that they'd jump on any loose wording in the FanDuel/Stars purchase and sale contracts, in order to score themselves a bargain.

The good news is that the paperwork calls for arbitration which is great for two reasons; 1. Speed. No waiting for clogged courts to hold hearings, and 2. A well-written arbitration judgement is virtually unappealable on the facts of the case. The arbitrators have to make errors in law.

khunter. Thank you for the GS post. Where do you find that 'info, please? An update on the overnight result, in due course, would be much appreciated.

*GOLDMAN SELLING ~2.3M FLUTTER ENTERTAINMENT SHRS VIA BOOKBUILD

The sports book just opening in another state was reported on Bloomberg news just now - so obviously a big deal over there- add in Bidens stimulus chaeques and a surge in profits is guaranteed imv.

Those are some startling numbers Gewillia.
I have a few other shares that have highlighted the discrepency in valuation between US P/e levels and the UK - Bio-tech, tech, crypto mining where US peers have up to 10x the value the UK market puts in a share. It seems the US has a wildly inflated view of shares or the UK is wildly discounted. IMHO a lot of the former and a bit of the latter. I am seeing a UK desire for dual listings to access the higher US value perception and I hope FLTR do take this opportunity to raise there to lower debt as i do think the US will have a correction this year as a result. TBH what surprises me most is the US companies are not using this to drive a much higher surge in takeover activity from the UK market.
NtD

I played with some numbers yesterday and take almost no responsibility for the fact that my steam-driven slide-rule may be wildly inaccurate. But try this on for size:

FanDuel had a turnover of $1.1 billion in 2020. It's smaller competitor, DraftKings, trades in on the NASDAQ in New York at 35 times turnover. Applying that multiple to FanDuel suggests a capitalisation of $37 billion, were FLTR to float, say, 10% to raise cash to pay down debt.

Last Friday FLTR closed at a capitalisation of £27 billion in London, which at $1.40 exchange rate = $37 billion. In other words, the rest of FLTR's assets are in the SP for nothing, if FanDuel (with 40% of the US market) is worth anything close to $37b.

Given that FLTR's non-US assets are worth a minimum of £10 billion, this suggests the SP is on its' way to north of £200. I stand to be corrected by anyone with a better slide-rule.

When the Biden cheques arrrive , many will be used on sports bets etc - so expecting a further surge here.

Been a good percentage increase today , should be due a TSG yearly update, 27/3/20 last one GLA

Best bet I made was investing here - stunning growth rvealed in the results - upgrade expected.

Welcome Roofer. Willie Hill publishes year-end results to 31/12/20 on Wednesday. The State of New Jersey has already announced that December's sports-betting turnover was 125% ahead of December '19. Here's hoping WMH gives some firm numbers, instead of rather meaningless percentages.

New Jersey says the state's total sports betting turnover for 2020 was almost $399 million, up $100 million from 2019. See:

https://www.nj.gov/oag/ge/docs/Financials/PressRel2020/December2020.pdf

And the normal profit margin for a book is 8%. I haven't yet worked out how to get this for other states, but you can see from NJ that the numbers are growing like topsy, so we might well be in for good news.

And left lol. 13928/ sold 14265. Arb 94.4/ sold 97.88p. Breakfast time , oh not another toasted currant tea cake ,

Finally joined over a year late paid 139.28p ,one to hold may the Yankees gamble wisely GLA

Icon paid. .0000644p GLA

ARB paid 94.4999p GLA

Out of respect to the locals who are under water GLA

Eua 26.97 / sold 28.05/28.06/28.08/28.26p ARB. 86.68/sold 99.16 ,busy morning ,Hmmm happyiness,may your profits be large nd keep banking em GLA

Eua paid 26.97p GLA

I choked again,couldn't press the Deal button at 13803 , I'm silly, anyhow. CNBC tv today Playstudios next market newcomer,large backers. Including MGM

Great info , I've watched this double over year , need to buy , GLa

https://www.wilx.com/2021/01/19/michigan-gaming-control-board-authorizes-online-gaming-sports-betting-to-begin-jan-22/

I just wonder who's going to snap up GAN, they must be a sitting duck looking at how much they're involved in US gambling.

It's news to me that I'm Trump supporter, can't remember that one, if you scroll back after doing research noted all them shorts ,but as you pointed out don't exist,this is another one that got away but I'm percentage man would of been out 100£ .i keep looking for LARGE pull back but alias that be only a dream ,may the profits keep coming. GLA

Dear Roofer, Bezzer & Gumbo, Why on earth do you fall for this Irish conspiracy theorist and his ludicrous claims of Betfair being associated with dubious voting machine in the US? He's nuttier than a fruitcake and all these claims of election fraud have been totally exploded as utter drivel. TV stations like Pox News have been obliged to run prime-time grovelling apologies to Dominion Voting Machines for repeating trump's claims that their machines were hacked.

Now to the real world and serious business: yesterday William Hill issued a trading update. Lost in the small print was the revelation that 4th quarter online revenue in the US was up by 121% compared to Sept-Dec 2019. Even the year-on-year number was up 32%, despite the fact that pro-sports was shut down from March through July.

Bear in mid that market penetration is still only around 25% as each state legalises. New York's governor has finally woken up to the fact that his neighbour, New Jersey, is getting 20/25% of it's tax revenue from New Yorkers driving out of the city to place bets online. He now wants to legalise sports book & casino online gambling. His opening bid is he wants 100% of the profits, like he gets from the state lottery, but he'll settle for a lot less, because making books is much more skilful & complicated than owning a piece of tin covered in flashing lights, that spits out numbered balls, a few times a week.

Imho, within 5 years, UK betting plc's will see their US operations dwarfing their UK businesses. This stock has gone from £60 to £150 in less than 18 months and should go very much higher in time. I'm along for the ride.

There's a trading update due here soon. I wonder what US number's they'll disclose?