The Finance Undersecretary of the Philippines has announced that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is expected to proceed with the sale of its self-operated casinos within the next two years.

This timeline was requested by PAGCOR’s chairman, Alejandro H. Tengco, to ensure proper consideration for any employees that might be affected by the move towards privatization.

Under PAGCOR’s watch, the Philippine government owns nine fully fledged Casino Filipino venues with 34 satellite casinos operating in malls and hotels.

The primary value of this privatization effort lies in the licenses held by PAGCOR, as the operator leases all of its casino properties.

While the idea of privatizing PAGCOR’s casinos has been discussed in the past, it appears that this time the organization is genuinely committed to the sale.

Additionally, PAGCOR aims to maximize the value of the casinos within the given timeline, as stated by the Finance Undersecretary.

Furthermore, the privatization effort aligns with the country’s broader objective of disposing of approximately PHP2 billion ($35.93m) worth of assets this year, representing a significant increase compared to the previous year.

Industry experts surmise that the flow of cash from the sale will help the country further regain its footing in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The post PAGCOR Selling Casino Filipino Venues Within Two Years appeared first on Keno Wizard.

The issuer of actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has announced it sold 294,143 shares of the operator in the context of the stock collapsing.

This way, Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management took part in a wider market sell-off stimulated by the disappointing forecast for jobs in the private sector in the previous month.

One of Cathie Wood’s Largest Stock Sales to Date

The transaction that saw the Florida-based ARK sell 252,502 shares from the ARK Innovation ETF and 41,641 shares from the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF represents one of the largest stock sales since the ARK began building its stake in the gaming company over three years ago.

The two transactions came after similar decisions were made at the end of February when the money manager bid farewell to 207,747 shares of the gaming operator from the same duo of ETFs.

At the moment, DraftKings’ shares in which ARK Investment Management continues to be one of the most important owners have gone up by close to 59% since the beginning of the year.

Argus Analyst Gives “Buy” Rating

Just one day after the significant share trimming announced by Cathie Wood’s ARK, Argus’ sell-side analyst John Staszak issued a note to clients, reinforcing the “buy” rating of the shares and reiterating a price target set at $22.

The figure marks an increase of around 22% from the close value registered on April 5. The same analyst gave an estimate on DraftKings’ ability to trigger a revenue of $3.1 billion in the current year, from $2.95 billion which is the company’s midpoint for the 2023 guidance, and also over the $3 billion figure estimated by Wall Street.

Staszak also used the decreasing costs with customer acquisition to explain to clients that DraftKings has the potential to turn profitable during Q3 2024. After that, the Boston-based operator could possibly generate a 25% earnings growth rate over the course of the following five years.

DraftKings had also spoken about its expectations to become profitable next year, even though it failed to name a quarter when the respective results might come up.

The operator’s co-founders Jason Robins and Matthew Kalish also announced they sold 600,000 shares of the company’s stock two weeks prior to Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management’s announcement.

Earlier in the week, DraftKings announced it requested to be allowed to provide sports betting markets on the upcoming Boston Marathon, one of the most popular races for both amateur and pro athletes.

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