Shares of
Penn Entertainment
were dropping after the gambling and esports company posted a wider-than-expected loss amid the launch of its new sports betting platform.
Midday Thursday, Penn stock dived 13% to $19.58.
Earlier Thursday, Penn reported a fourth-quarter loss of $2.37 a share, wider than the 54 cent-loss Wall Street expected—and sharply lower than per-share earnings of 13 cents recorded in the year-ago quarter.
Revenue of $1.395 billion fell short of Wall Street’s forecast for $1.53 billion and slid from the $1.586 billion a year prior.
On the earnings call Thursday, Chief Executive Officer Jay Snowden said that ESPN BET’s launch in November meant an influx of new customers and in turn higher promotional expenses, which ultimately weighed on net revenue. Customers winning sports bets also dragged on revenue, the company said.
DraftKings
reports results next, after the market close Thursday.
Write to Emily Dattilo at [email protected]
Read the full article here