Flutter Decked with Double Downgrade, Price Target Slashed by Citi
Posted on: April 16, 2026, 11:51h.
Last updated on: April 16, 2026, 11:51h.
- Flutter stock now rated by “sell” by Citi Research
- The research firm also cut its price target on the gaming stock in a big way
- Analyst says FanDuel Predicts warrants little value
Shares of Flutter Entertainment (NYSE: FLUT) traded lower Thursday after Citi Research analyst Monique Pollard double-downgraded the stock to “sell” from “buy.”
In midday trading, shares of the FanDuel owner were off 3.10%, extending a slide that’s resulted in the consumer discretionary stock losing 52.10% of its value over the past year. Pollard, who is now the lone analyst rating Flutter the equivalent of “sell,” also slashed her price target on the gaming stock to around $92 from $214. She cites the potential for weaker earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the first half of 2026 and the possibility that Flutter will be forced to lower 2026 guidance as among the reasons for the downgrade.
We are Sell-rated on Flutter,” notes Pollard. “We see its pole position in the US as its key investment attraction, but new entrants and profit growth uncertainty cloud this point.”
She cut her first-quarter EBITDA forecast on Flutter by 10% while reducing her estimate for the second quarter by 37%. Of the other 25 analysts covering the stock, 20 rate it the equivalents of “buy” or “strong buy.”
Prediction Markets Problematic for Flutter
Pollard also placed Flutter on 30-day “negative catalyst watch,” citing in part headwinds created by prediction markets.
Yes/no exchanges are becoming a multi-sided problem for sportsbook operators like Flutter. First, sports volume on platforms such as Kalshi continues surging, indicating some bettors are migrating to those venues. Second, companies such as DraftKings and FanDuel are responding with their own competing offerings. Flutter recently launched FanDuel Predicts.
However, those are cost-intensive responses. Flutter could spend as much as $300 million this year ramping FanDuel Predicts, but those expenditures may not pay dividends over the near-term. In fact, Pollard says FanDuel Predicts warrants little value due to regulatory overhangs facing prediction markets.
In related news, FanDuel filed with the National Futures Association (NFA) to create a new futures commission merchant (FCM) to offer event contracts, a move that is exclusive of the company’s partnership with CME Group.
Flutter Buyback Activity Likely to Decline, Says Analyst
In 2024, Flutter announced a $5 billion share repurchase program. Since then, the Paddy Power owner has been a dedicated buyer of its shares, but Pollard sees the pace of that buyback activity declining this year and in 2027 “to ensure that the leverage implied by our forecasts is within management’s 2-2.5x medium-term guidance range by FY27.”
That’s likely disappointing to Flutter investors because with the stock faltering, now would be the ideal for the company to buy back shares.
The Citi analyst trimmed her 2026 buyback forecast to $250 million from $600 million while cutting her 2027 estimate in half to $750 million from $1.5 billion.
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