Penn Interactive, a product of Penn’s $1.5 billion deal with Disney-owned ESPN, launched ESPN Bet in 17 states on November 15th. The launch saw Penn’s Interactive segment generate revenues of $31.5 million in Q4, despite an adjusted EBITDA loss of $333.8 million. Overall company revenue decreased by 12.5% year-on-year in Q4, dropping from $1.6 billion to $1.4 billion. The northeast segment, with 17 properties including Ameristar East Chicago and Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg, contributed $662.9 million to the total revenue. Earnings per share also fell from $0.13 to a loss of $2.37, while total liquidity decreased to $2.1 billion from the previous year’s figure of $2.6 billion, with a net debt of $1.6 billion at the end of Q4.
In terms of full-year results, Penn recorded $6.36 billion in revenue for the year, slightly lower than the previous year’s figure of $6.4 billion. However, the adjusted EBITDAR of $1.51 billion in 2023 was significantly lower than the $1.94 billion in 2022, resulting in a net loss of $491.4 million for the year. One key factor contributing to the poor full-year results was the $1 sale of Barstool’s brand back to founder Dave Portnoy, incurring a loss of $923.2 million for the 2023 financial year.
Despite the challenging financial results, ESPN Bet’s launch was successful, with record handle and over a million first-time depositors. Penn’s president, Jay Snowden, highlighted ESPN Bet’s strong performance indicators and expressed optimism for its growth in the competitive US market. Further product enhancements and integrations are expected to strengthen ESPN Bet’s position and increase its market share.
Penn’s focus on future growth includes plans to launch ESPN Bet in North Carolina and New York, with the acquisition of Wynn Interactive Holdings’ sports betting licenses in the latter. This move will expand ESPN Bet’s reach in the lucrative New York market and position it as a key player in the highly competitive sports betting industry.
