BetMGM on course to achieve FY2023 earnings forecast following strong Q3
Operator reveals joint venture is “well on pace” to achieve its forecast with Q3 marking MGM Resorts' first profitable quarter for the online business
BetMGM has reported net gaming revenue (NGR) of $458m, up 15% year on year, with parent company MGM Resorts noting it is “well on pace” to achieve full-year revenue forecasts.
As part of its Q3 earnings call, MGM Resorts International CFO Jonathan Halkyard revealed that BetMGM, the joint venture with Entain, is set to achieve its forecast of $1.8bn to $2bn in NGR for the year.
Halkyard added that the firm’s 50% share of BetMGM’s operating income in the third quarter was $13m, which marked MGM’s first quarter of profitability.
Elsewhere, senior management talked up the launch of the BetMGM brand in the UK via its LeoVegas subsidiary.
CEO Bill Hornbuckle was full of praise for the brand’s launch in the UK and said the initial performance was very encouraging for the operator.
Hornbuckle commented: “The UK market is ideal for an initial launch due to its size and the brand recognition of MGM with UK customers. Initial KPIs are very encouraging with the first-time deposits much higher than expected.”
Hornbuckle revealed that the firm is looking to expand more into international markets, given the initial success of the UK launch.
He said: “We will also look for push to extend into further international markets through existing B2B relationships.”
Overall, MGM Resorts International was able to post revenue of $4bn in Q3 2023, despite the cyber attack that occurred in early September.
The attack forced MGM to shut down certain systems across its US portfolio.
The operator already stated that it expected the attack to have a negative impact of $100m on its adjusted property EBITDAR in Q3, with Hornbuckle stating that the operator went to “hell and back” as a result of this disruption.
The attack led to a 16% drop in the adjusted property EBITDAR from $846m in 2022 to $714m.
Hornbuckle was full of praise for MGM Resorts staff in the wake of the September cyberattack and said the incident is now behind them, and he is excited for what is to come.
He said: “We started the quarter with great momentum across our businesses. While we were faced with a difficult cybersecurity issue in September, our employees rose to the occasion with incredible resilience and determination.
“With the incident now behind us, we are a stronger company having been through the challenge.”