--Flutter raised its full-year guidance excluding the U.S.

--It expects a wider-than-anticipated loss in the U.S. on increased investment

--The return of live sports helped online revenue in the quarter

By Adria Calatayud

Flutter Entertainment PLC said Wednesday that third-quarter revenue growth accelerated and raised its full-year guidance, although increased investment in the U.S. will lead to a wider-than-anticipated loss in the region.

The Dublin-based gambling group said pro forma revenue for the quarter was 1.33 billion pounds ($1.76 billion) compared with GBP1.04 billion for the same period last year. On a constant-currency basis, total pro forma revenue growth accelerated to 30%, following a 22% rise for the first half.

Online revenue grew by a third, boosted by the resumption of live sports, the company said.

Shares in London at 0905 GMT were up 2.9% at 13,150 pence.

The owner of Paddy Power, Betfair, FanDuel and PokerStars said revenue in the U.S. for the quarter was GBP161 million, up 82% at constant currency. New customer acquisition in the U.S. was better than forecast at 450,000, taking its total active customers in the country to 1.8 million in the third quarter.

Flutter said it now expects full-year pro forma adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization excluding U.S. operations to be between GBP1.28 billion and GBP1.35 billion, driven by higher customer volumes across all divisions. In the U.S., the company anticipates a pro forma adjusted loss of between GBP160 million and GBP180 million.

This compares with previous guidance of Ebitda excluding U.S. between GBP1.18 billion and GBP1.33 billion, and a loss in the U.S. of between GBP140 million and GBP160 million.

Chief Executive Peter Jackson said Flutter's third-quarter performance exceeded the company's expectations in both sports and gambling.

"Looking ahead, whilst the outlook with respect to Covid-19 remains uncertain, we are confident that our business is well positioned to capture further growth in a sustainable and responsible way," Mr. Jackson said.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said Flutter's acquisition activity coupled with targeted promotional activity were the main driver of its revenue growth, although a number of tailwinds such as the return of sporting events and the reopening of physical stores also contributed.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-11-20 0434ET