South Carolina Moves Forward with Sports Betting Legalization While Gaming Sector Shows Mixed Momentum

Legislative Breakthrough in South Carolina Sports Betting

A significant development emerged as South Carolina lawmakers prefiled two competing bills aimed at expanding the state’s gambling landscape. House Bill 3625, titled the “South Carolina Sports Wagering Act,” seeks to establish a dedicated Sports Wagering Commission to regulate sports betting activities across the state. In parallel, House Bill 3353 takes a broader constitutional amendment approach, proposing to legalize sports betting alongside pari-mutuel horse racing and casino gaming. The bill models its revenue allocation after Mississippi’s approach, directing proceeds toward infrastructure improvements including highway and bridge repairs.

The legislative session commencing January 14 represents a critical juncture for both proposals. While H.3625 has been routed to the House Ways and Means Committee, H.3353 faces consideration from the House Judiciary Committee. Historically, South Carolina has maintained strong resistance to gambling expansion, presenting a formidable challenge for proponents of either bill.

Market Dynamics and Sportsbook Performance

Recent betting metrics reveal concerning trends for the sportsbook industry. During mid-December’s NFL Week 15, Macquarie estimated an overall market hold of just 5%, with NFL-specific hold reaching only 2% while other sports captured 9%. This marked the third consecutive week of subpar hold performance, prompting forecasters to revise Q4 expectations downward to 8.6%, below the customary 9% benchmark.

New York’s market demonstrated particular weakness, with one-month trailing handle growth decelerated to high-single digits as operators implemented more conservative promotional spending. While BetMGM, Fanatics, and ESPN Bet drove most growth, DraftKings and Flutter Entertainment remained flat versus prior-year comparisons, with Caesars and Rush Street Interactive declining.

The Week 15 NFL results—featuring 13 favored teams winning outright, 12 covering spreads, and 7 over-the-total outcomes—generally proved disadvantageous for sportsbooks. Travis Hunter’s Heisman Trophy victory represented BetMGM’s largest award-related liability.

Significant Industry Transactions and Strategic Positioning

Penn Entertainment advanced its multi-platform strategy by launching Hollywood Casino as a standalone Pennsylvania app, offering over 700 iCasino titles supplemented by daily promotions and progressive jackpots. The application leverages Penn’s proprietary technology and facilitates seamless account integration with existing ESPN Bet customers across Android, iOS, and desktop platforms.

Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI) finalized its previously announced $395 million real estate acquisition of Bally’s Kansas City and Shreveport properties. The cross-defaulted master lease arrangement includes initial annual rent of $32.2 million, translating to an 8.2% initial cash capitalization rate with projected first-year rent coverage of 2.2x for the combined assets.

Meanwhile, Entain acknowledged that Australia’s AUSTRAC regulatory body commenced civil penalty proceedings in Federal Court related to alleged anti-money laundering compliance violations. The company has implemented remediation enhancements targeted for completion by June 2025 and faces potential material penalties, though the extent remains uncertain pending judicial determination.

Analyst Reappraisals and Stock Target Updates

Deutsche Bank refreshed its gaming sector models with revised price targets, primarily reflecting a shift from 2025 to 2026 as the valuation base year. Wynn Resorts received an increased target to $128 from $118 (Buy maintained), while Las Vegas Sands moved to $66 from $60 (Buy rating). MGM Resorts, GLPI, Boyd Gaming, and Golden Entertainment all received modest upward adjustments. DraftKings’ target increased to $36 from $33 despite a maintained Hold rating, while Caesars advanced to $58 from $56 (Buy sustained).

Argus upgraded Boyd Gaming to Buy with a $90 price target, signaling improved confidence in the operator’s trajectory. Conversely, Morgan Stanley downgraded Melco Resorts to Equal Weight from Overweight, citing conservative margin assumptions and Macau gaming revenue growth expectations limited to mid-single digits for 2025.

Barclays initiated GLPI coverage at Equal Weight with a $55 price target, acknowledging the company’s transparent rent coverage metrics and strategic partnerships while noting asset quality considerations relative to sector peers. Wells Fargo similarly launched Golden Entertainment research at Overweight with a $38 target, characterizing the operator as a straightforward investment with a solid balance sheet and management pursuing meaningful strategic optionality.

Competitive Landscape and App Store Positioning

Application download rankings revealed FanDuel commanding 22% market share leadership, followed by DraftKings at 17%. Within the App Store’s sports betting category, PrizePicks secured the top position, with FanDuel and ESPN Media occupying top-five slots. Active user concentration showed ESPN Bet at 19%, DraftKings at 18%, and FanDuel at 17%.

Macquarie maintained its preference for the online gaming sector, emphasizing that it represents the gaming industry’s only major vertical sustaining double-digit growth independent of macroeconomic conditions. The analyst identified DraftKings and Flutter Entertainment as offering superior exposure to U.S. market expansion projected through 2030, with Flutter potentially reaching $600 per share within four years given current industry trajectory and pending legislation implications.