PaddyPower Betfair not a market favourite

Shares in FTSE 100 bookmaker PaddyPower Betfair (LON:PPB) have dropped by 5.32% to 6,406p (as of 13:10 GMT) despite announcing a 17% improvement in first-quarter revenues. However, online sports gambling revenues were negatively impacted by adverse match results in the UK and Ireland. Management said the company was on track to meet profit expectations and that investment in the US is generating good returns.

Chief executive Peter Jackson said: “Q1 was a good quarter for the Group with revenues up 17%, notwithstanding customer friendly sports results in the UK. Underlying momentum remains good for Paddy Power with 22% growth in average daily actives. For Betfair, we continue to make good progress on the technology development work to enhance our global customer propositions which will enable us to accelerate international growth. Meanwhile, the geographical diversification of our online business has been further enhanced by the addition of Adjarabet in February, with integration progressing well.

“In Australia, Sportsbet delivered a very strong quarter with revenues increasing by 20%. As we anticipated, our ongoing investment in customer value and the recent tax increases are strengthening Sportsbet’s competitive positioning.

“In the US, FanDuel Group is making huge progress, with our unique proposition of brand, product offering, existing fantasy customer base, US market experience and global sports betting expertise driving a Q1 New Jersey sports betting market share of 50%“.