Newly rebranded Penn Entertainment has exercised options to acquire the remaining shares in Barstool Sports, making the brand a wholly-owned subsidiary of the US operator.
In a filing sent to the SEC on Wednesday (17 August), Penn said it had exercised existing call rights to acquire the remaining shares in the business, and that the purchase would be completed by February 2023.
Penn’s first acquisition in the business took place in 2020, when it agreed to buy a 36% stake in Barstool for $161.2m.Terms of the latest deal suggest it will buy the remaining two-thirds or so of the business in two steps, for total consideration of $387m.
Penn’s Interactive segment, which includes both the Barstool brand in the US and theScore in Canada, generated revenue of $154.9m in Q2 2022 – a 61.4% increase year-on-year – while declaring an adjusted EBITDAR loss of $20.8m.
Penn said that following the migration of theScore Bet onto its proprietary PAM and risk and trading platforms, it remains confident in its ability to migrate Barstool Sportsbook onto its new tech stack in Q3 2023.
Penn Entertainment president and CEO Jay Snowden: “Our Barstool branded retail sportsbooks resonate with the younger demographics and create meaningful cross-sell opportunities.”
This, it said, will allow it to realise the full benefits of its in-house technology stack by creating meaningful cost synergies and improved marketing and promotional capabilities.
Jay Snowden, CEO and president of Penn Entertainment, said in the operator’s Q2 2022 earnings report: “Our Barstool branded retail sportsbooks resonate with the younger demographics and create meaningful cross-sell opportunities.
“Our recently converted Barstool sportsbook in Lake Charles, Louisiana, set a new standard for retail sportsbook experiences, and we are seeing encouraging results in visitation and spend.
“Additionally, with the passage of sports betting in Massachusetts earlier this week – the birthplace of Barstool Sports and home to our Plainridge Park Casino – we are excited to add yet another possible retail launch by the end of this year while mobile wagering is anticipated in 2023.”