Entain CFO Opens Up On Twin Goals Following Release of Promising Q3 Results

Entain’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Michael Snape remains extremely optimistic about the gambling giant’s long-term outlook. There was cause for celebration when the company released its Q3 2026 financial results last week as online UK & Ireland (UK&I) net gaming revenue (NGR) climbed 14%.

Expectations were exceeded as group NGR saw a 2% uptick, and Snape, along with Entain’s senior leadership team, has outlined his priorities for the company. And he is confident that the Ladbrokes and Coral owner can remain in robust shape moving forward.

Bullish mood

Entain’s domestic operation showed no signs of flagging, and it offset the problems experienced in Brazil, where margins were squeezed. The CEO, Stella David, insisted that Entain can be a “long-term industry winner”, and Snape has now echoed that remark. In doing so, he stressed how Entain can generate cash and continue to provide value to shareholders.

Discussing Entain’s underlying intentions on a Q3 earnings call, Snape said:

“Managing our cost, optimising the cost base is a way that we’re running the business. It’s not a discrete project; it is something that we think about and do every day.

“You’ve already seen where we’ve made some headcount reductions and other initiatives. We are focused on controlling what we can control while strengthening the foundations of the business.

“I want to again emphasise as a final point, behind continued growth and consistent execution, our priorities remain very clear: optimise our cost base, improve cash generation, and strengthen the balance sheet, all with an absolute laser focus on shareholder value.”

Charting a stormy course

The notion of providing shareholder value is obviously a clear focus for Entain, given that they were relegated from the FTSE 100 to FTSE 250 last month. In addition, the company has not been immune in fending off the economic challenges sweeping through the betting industry.

In last year’s budget announced by then-Chancellor Rachel Reeves, remote gaming duty (RGD) paid on online casino bets was hiked up from 21% to 40% of gross gambling yield (GGY). Whereas as of April next year, general betting duty paid on online sports wagers will be bumped up from 15% to 25% of GGY, with horseracing exempt.

Meanwhile, the upcoming budget, John Healey’s first as Chancellor, is likely to see a doubling of the Machine Games Duty (MGD) rate to 40% on Category B machines.

This has caused rancour within the industry, with the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) pointing to modelling suggesting an MGD increase could see up to 16,000 jobs axed, and as many as 1,500 betting shops closed.

Added to that, lobbying efforts have intensified over the past few weeks, with Entain leading the calls. David has already written to the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, and urged the Chancellor to try to convince them to refrain from implementing the prospective measures given the tax burdens placed on betting companies.

No big plans

With Entain, there appears to be no grand project in the works in terms of a Project Romer 2 to deal with cost optimisation, according to Snape.

The original project was designed to drive cost savings of £100 million, and Entain has tightened its belt over the past year, which has included making redundancies.

If anything, the current period is the calm before the storm. Although Entain’s senior leadership team harbours ambitions of delivering long-term shareholder value and generating more cash, continued market uncertainty and the budget might lead to a rethink.