City analysts appear more optimistic on the future of Flutter Entertainment and Entain on public markets despite both profiles being impacted by huge stock declines in 2026 trading to date.
Recently relegated off the London Stock Exchange’s (LSE) prestigious FTSE 100 to the FTSE 250, the underperforming stock of Entain is being circled by analysts at JP Morgan.
The global investment banking company believes that Entain’s stock is now undervalued, and has reiterated its ‘overweight’ rating.
Can Entain come up trumps?
A potential wipeout in Brazil would have contributed to JP Morgan cutting its target price from £10.50 to £9.65, as Entain has (or had, as it stands) a presence in the South American nation via its Sportingbet brand.
However, this target price would still represent an increase of over 120% on its current share price of around £4.31.
JP Morgan also clearly thinks that Entain could weather the storm should Machine Games Duty (MGD) rise in the UK Autumn Budget.
MGD is rumoured to be high up the list on Chancellor John Healey’s agenda, and could double, according to reports. This has led to warnings from the likes of Jennings Bet Owner Greg Knight, Rank Group Chief Executive Officer Richard Harris, and Betfred Founder Fred Done, with Done going as far to say that the doubling of MGD would kill the UK’s retail betting market by 2030.
But JP Morgan is confident of a turnaround for Entain on the LSE as it looks to pick up market share from challenger bookmakers who may be struggling more than tier one operators to adapt to the already-implemented increase in Remote Gaming Duty (RGD) to 40%.
That turnaround feels necessary at Entain, given its stock is down by nearly 45% so far this year.
Citi analyst upgrades Flutter rating
For Flutter, there are also signs of positivity, as Citi analyst Monique Pollard upgraded her rating on its stock from ‘neutral’ to ‘buy’.
Flutter is another gambling giant which has seen its stock tumble in 2026 – to the tune of 62.62%.
The Ireland-headquartered owner of FanDuel, Paddy Power, Sky Bet and Betfair, among others, has not yet experienced a turnaround in fortunes since it delisted from the LSE to become exclusively listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) at the beginning of August.
But Pollard, among others, is optimistic of a recovery despite Flutter being another company heavily impacted by the Brazil ban because of its Betnacional operation.
The Citi analyst is not the only one predicting that Flutter’s stock will rise. Kenneth Dart, a prominent gambling investor, has been steadily increasing his control over the company with a $14.16bn market cap, now holding an approximate 31.4% total economic interest in the business.
Leadership, as ever, is hopeful of a stock market turnaround, with outgoing CEO Peter Jackson claiming that the UK tax increases give Flutter “a really good opportunity to substantially increase market share”.
Chief Financial Officer, Rob Coldrake, was equally optimistic, pointing to markets where the group is experiencing success, such as Italy and Turkey. Coldrake did, however, point to Brazil as a market where the business can grow further – these plans will currently be on hold.
Flutter’s stock recently dropped as low as $74 – its lowest point since early 2020 – as tax burdens, regulatory stipulations and the rise of prediction markets in the US create global headwinds for the business.
But its sheer size and stature seems to be a factor playing into analysts’ ratings, with a general consensus that the stock is a ‘buy’. Data gathered from 33 analysts shows an average target price of around $133 – a 63% uptick on its current share price of $81.58.
Regulatory risks will always play a major role in the future of a gambling PLC, but it is fair to say that analysts from some of the world’s biggest firms are of the opinion that these two stocks have taken far too big of a hit in recent times – and could well be in for a share price rebound.