DraftKings Reports Better-Than-Expected Q1

DraftKings’ willingness to bet on itself is paying off.

The sports betting operator reported Q1 earnings of $312 million on Friday, a 253% uptick compared to $89 million during the same period in 2020. The company also said it has 1.5 million monthly unique paying customers — more than FactSet’s estimated 1.31 million. 

Both revenue and loss per share outperformed analyst estimates collected in a Refinitiv survey. 

• $312 million in revenue vs. $236.2 million expected
• $0.36 loss per share vs. $0.42 expected

In response to an impressive Q1, DraftKings raised its fiscal 2021 revenue guidance from between $900 million to $1 billion to a range of $1.05 to $1.15 billion. 

DraftKings has locked in several high-profile partnerships and acquisitions in recent months:

• Acquired sports betting radio network and streaming channel VSiN in March. 
• Inked a $50 million deal with Meadowlark Media for Dan Le Batard’s radio show and podcast network in April.
• Agreed to a five-year partnership with UFC worth more than $100 million, per Sportico. 

The company does not expect to be profitable in 2021 due to expenses incurred in expanding its offerings and reach.