Financial summary
Key highlights
“I’m pleased to report another excellent quarter for Kambi, with strong financial results against tough 2020 comparables, which is a testament to our robust business model and the hard work of our staff across the world. Kambi Q3 revenue was up 48% year-on-year, operating margin was once again strong at 35% and we continue to be highly cash generative. Excluding DraftKings, operator turnover was up 10% year-on-year, highlighting the underlying growth in the business.
We had a strong start to the new NFL season, which kicked off on 9 September, with our platform outperforming the competition and our market-leading Bet Builder product engaging a large number of bettors and returning higher average operator trading margin. Furthermore, revenue in Q3 was boosted by our continued US expansion, including day one launches in Arizona, the 15th state in which Kambi has launched. In total, Kambi completed approximately one launch per week on average throughout the quarter.
As we saw in Q3, M&A remains an ongoing trend in this industry, with the number of transactions featuring sports betting and gaming assets on the rise due to a growing appetite to invest in companies with highly sought-after technology. This illustrates the inherent value in proven businesses and supports a strong belief in future growth prospects in regulated markets across the world.
On the subject of M&A, I was delighted to announce our acquisition of esports data and odds provider Abios during the quarter. We believe Abios is a great fit for Kambi, and its technology and expertise will enable us to create a first-class esports product that will diversify our revenue streams by capitalising on the opportunities presented by this fast-growing vertical. The acquisition is also in line with our longer-term strategy to further modularise our platform and, with a strong balance sheet, we remain in a good position to explore additional acquisition opportunities in the future.
As ever, Kambi is committed to creating the world’s leading sportsbook and we have spent more than a decade focused exclusively on the sports betting vertical, developing a core product that is near impossible to replicate. Whether it’s our ability to offer a great betting experience, being ahead of the curve in terms of regulation and compliance or having a wealth of network data at hand to effectively power the engine, Kambi has both the technology and expertise in place to deliver long-term success for our partners.
Of course, during the quarter we learned of Penn National Gaming’s decision to acquire theScore, a Canadian sports media company which owns a player account management system and plans to develop its own sportsbook. It’s incredibly difficult, as well as costly, to build, maintain, and continue to develop a first-class sportsbook, as we’ve seen with unsuccessful efforts of others in the past. In the meantime, we’ll continue to support their growth with our fantastic platform and service we have built over many years, which remains very much of interest to our growing list of prospective partners.
In summary, we’ve performed well, and the future looks bright. We currently have a sales pipeline as strong and varied as I’ve known it. As the global trend of regulation continues, we are in a great position to capitalise on future opportunities as and when they arise, and we have announced the implementation of a share buyback scheme.
Many of us at Kambi have been in this industry for more than two decades, during which time we’ve seen the sports betting market change markedly. This change is reflected in the evolution of Kambi, where we have built a business that thrives in regulated market conditions, grown to become a global leader, and partnered with major brands across the globe, many entering the space for the first time. This experience means we know what it takes to succeed and I am therefore excited by what the coming years hold for Kambi.”
You are invited to participate in a web presentation at 10.45 CEST with Kambi Group plc’s CEO Kristian Nylén and CFO David Kenyon. The presentation will be held in English and can be accessed using the link below. After the presentation there will be the opportunity to ask questions.
Please see details in the link below:
https://financialhearings.com/event/13305
Numbers for participation in the telephone conference:
SE: +46 8 566 427 07
UK: +44 33 3300 9264
US: +1 631 913 1422; PIN US: 15720191#
Link to the webcast: https://tv.streamfabriken.com/kambi-group-q3-2021
Link to report page: https://www.kambi.com/investors/financial-reports-and-presentations/quarterly-reports
Kambi Group plc contacts:
Kristian Nylén, Chief Executive Officer
David Kenyon, Chief Financial Officer
Mia Nordlander, SVP Investor Relations