Stocks Tracker: April showers dampen some share prices as Evolution stock soars

Flutter Entertainment  1 April closing: 15,480p 30 April closing: 14,840p Peak April closing: 15,770p  An industry giant with quarterly revenue of £1.4bn, Flutter Entertainment is not free of the unpredictability of the stock market, as shareholders duly found out at the end of April. The Dublin-headquartered behemoth posted a 33% year-on-year (YoY) increase in total group revenue to £1.4bn for Q1 2021 on Thursday 29 April, only to see its share price fall to a near-monthly low in the aftermath. From Wednesday 28 April, with a share price of 15,770p, Flutter slipped to 14,840p on Friday 30 April, with the market failing to respond to the group’s strong financial report. Flutter CEO Peter Jackson said: “As restrictions begin to ease and retail reopens across a number of markets, we remain confident that our diversified business leaves us well placed to deliver sustainable growth going forward.” Jackson went on to state the operator was looking to move Fox Bet onto its Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) global betting platform as it looks move away from The Stars Group’s (TSG) legacy platform.

888 Holdings 1 April closing: 399.80p 30 April closing: 426.60p Peak April closing: 450p  FTSE 250 operator 888 reaped the rewards of strong annual revenue growth to record its highest closing share price in more than a year. 888 posted a 56% year-on-year increase in revenue for Q1 2021 to $272.5m (£196.3m), with B2C leaping 57% YoY and B2B growing 20% YoY. The positive results saw 888’s share price jump from 431p to 450p on Wednesday 28 April before the post-results hype subsided the following day, dropping to 432p. Peel Hunt analyst Ivor Jones said: “Trading is now, in Q2 2021, running up against tough comps and we believe that 888 will stop reporting quite such eye-catching headline revenue growth figures, at least for a while. “This growing diversity, plus 888’s attraction as a partner for a US business, encourages us to reiterate our Buy recommendation and increase our sum-of-the-parts-based target price from 400p to 500p,” he added. Elsewhere, EGR exclusively revealed in April that 888 is in discussions with Sports Illustrated over the creation of a US-facing sports betting joint venture. With the news breaking on Friday 16 April, 888’s share price rose 3p on Monday 19 April to 408p. Evolution 1 April closing: SEK1,280 30 April closing: SEK1,672 Peak April closing: SEK1,672  An incredibly strong set of Q1 2021 financial results saw Evolution’s share price rocket from SEK1,460 to SEK1,671.20 as the supplier delivered a 105% rise in revenue to €235.8m for the first three months of the year. The Stockholm-listed group also posted triple digit increases across EBITDA (150%) and profit (143.5%) to €160.1m and €132m, respectively. The live casino giant also recorded strong annual growth across Asia (156%) and North America (204%). Evolution recorded an initial early April share price boom after sealing a €450m deal to acquire online slots developer Big Time Gaming, with share price jumping from SEK1,355 to SEK1,409.6. Elsewhere, Evolution CPO Todd Haushalter told EGR he had pulled the plug on several NetEnt slots to instead focus on newer titles designed for a modern audience and a committed group of Evolution shareholders reacted with glee on social media. Haushalter said: “I started talking with the team here about it and they had a bit of an identity crisis. They had the DNA of great game making and rich games, but they had been asked to become a volume house. “Luckily for us, a lot of those same people were still here and as soon as I started asking them about quality, their eyes lit up as that hadn’t been the mandate,” he added. Indeed, Evolution boasts the second biggest market cap of any gambling company in the world at $39.6bn, behind only Las Vegas Sands. Betsson AB  1 April closing: SEK82.40 30 April closing: SEK77.20 Peak April closing: SEK85.65  A 12% rise in Q1 revenue to £138m at the end of the month couldn’t stop the rot for Betsson as its mid-month share price slump failed to show signs of recovery. From a monthly peak of SEK85.65 on Monday 19 April, the operator’s share price tumbled, bottoming out during the week on Thursday 22 April at SEK78.25. After a slight recovery ahead the group’s Q1 2021 results announcement gave way to a monthly low of SEK77.20 on 30 April, with regulatory headwinds in Germany proving a difficult pill to swallow. The Stockholm-listed operator’s downturn perhaps doesn’t reflect the month itself, with three major moves made by Betsson. The first saw the group secure a local partnership with Mexican casino operator Big Bola to expand its presence in Latam before agreeing a £7.6m deal to acquire a 50% stake in software developer JDP Tech, which operates a proprietary tech platform for processing payments in Latam markets. Betsson also acquired a 35% stake in Strive Platform Limited as it looks to make its US debut in the state of Colorado.