Sports Betting Operator DraftKings Posts Q4 Beat, Raises 2021 Guidance After More State Launches: What Investors Should Know

Sports betting and iGaming company DraftKings reported fourth-quarter and full fiscal year earnings before the market open Friday.

What Happened: DraftKings Inc's DKNG fourth-quarter revenue totaled $322 million, representing a 146% year-over-year increase and beating the Street consensus estimate of $233 million.

DraftKings has 1.5 million monthly unique payers in the fourth quarter, a 44% year-over-year increase. Full year monthly unique payers were up 29% year-over-year.

Average revenue per monthly unique payer was $65 in the fourth quarter, up 55% year-over-year.

DraftKings launched in Tennessee in the fourth quarter. The state saw the best two month results for a new sports betting state, with over $300 million in handle.

Related Link: DraftKings Could Beat Revenue Estimates By 25% Over Next 5 Years: Morgan Stanley

What’s Next: DraftKings raised its full-year guidance and said it sees fiscal 2021 revenue coming in a range of $900 million to $1 billion. The previous guidance from the company was $750 million to $850 million. 

The new guidance represents a year-over-year revenue increase of 40% to 55% for the full fiscal year. The guidance was raised due to the strength seen in the fourth quarter and additional state launches.

“We are raising our revenue outlook for 2021 due to our expectation for continued growth, the outperformance of our core business and newly launched states that were not included in our previous guidance,” DraftKings CEO Jason Robins said in a statement.

DraftKings launched in Michigan and Virginia in the first quarter of fiscal 2021. This represents 6% of the U.S. population. DraftKings is now live in 12 states, covering 25% of the U.S. population. The company is in more states than any other online sports betting peer. 

Benzinga’s Take: The strong fourth-quarter results from DraftKings could send other sports betting stocks higher. Investors could look to Penn National Gaming PENN, FanDuel PDYPY and MGM Resorts International MGM.

DraftKings came in second place with a 24.5% market share in Michigan based on early results. The company has continued to be a strong performer in new state launches with strong brand awareness and partnerships.

The company is a leader in the market with a presence for online sports betting in more states than any competitor. Even with that said, the company only has access to 25% of the U.S. population, which could show there is room for more growth ahead.

DKNG Price Action: Shares of DraftKings were up 4.83% to $60.60 premarket Friday. The 52-week high for shares is $64.78.