DraftKings Inc. shares rose after the online sportsbook posted second-quarter sales that beat expectations and it raised its forecast for the year.

The Boston-based company now projects sales of up to $3.54 billion for 2023, according to a statement Thursday. In May, it projected annual revenue of up to $3.24 billion.

DraftKings also forecast a narrower loss for the year. It now sees an adjusted annual loss of $190 million to $220 million before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. It previously projected a loss of $290 million to $340 million. The company said it would earn as much as $175 million on sales of $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter.

• Revenue in the second quarter jumped 88% to $875 million, beating analysts’ estimates of $758 million, as the company signed new customers and took bets on more lucrative products.
• The number of monthly unique players grew 44% from a year ago to 2.1 million in the quarter, in line with analysts forecasts.
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Key Insights

• DraftKings is competing with FanDuel, a division of Irish bookmaker Flutter Entertainment Plc, and others to attract bettors as more states legalize sports gambling. The company has been under pressure from investors to become profitable after years of losing money on advertising campaigns and free promotional bets.
• DraftKings has tried to reduce its losses in part by offering more parlays, or multi-leg bets that are harder to win, allowing the company to keep more of the revenue.
• In June, DraftKings made a $195 million counteroffer for PointsBet Holding Ltd’s US sports and online betting business, but was ultimately outbid by Fanatics Inc.

Market Reaction

• Shares of DraftKings rose as much as 10% to $32.99 in after-market trading. The stock has nearly tripled this year through the close on Thursday.