So here's what happened with Flutter Entertainment (FLUT) on Thursday: the sports betting giant reported quarterly numbers that weren't quite what Wall Street wanted, and the stock promptly took a nosedive to fresh 52-week lows. It's one of those classic market moments where the short-term reaction tells a very different story than the long-term vision management is selling.

The fourth-quarter revenue came in at $4.74 billion. That's a solid 25% jump from a year ago, but it missed the Street's expectation of $4.97 billion. Earnings per share of $1.74 also fell short of the $1.99 consensus. In after-hours trading, the shares dropped over 9% to around $111.50, breaking below the previous 52-week low of $114.74.

But here's where it gets interesting. While investors were focused on the quarterly miss, Flutter's CEO Peter Jackson was busy talking about what he called the "most valuable long-term opportunity in the U.S." – and it's not traditional sports betting.

It's prediction markets.

Flutter launched its FanDuel Predicts platform in the U.S. back in December. The idea is pretty straightforward: let people bet on all sorts of outcomes, not just sports games. The platform offers sports-based markets in 18 states and non-sports markets (think politics, entertainment, you name it) in all 50 states.

"Prediction markets are a significant incremental growth opportunity for FanDuel," Jackson said. "We believe the emergence of prediction markets will accelerate the path to state regulation of online sports betting and iGaming."

Think about that for a second. Jackson isn't just saying prediction markets are another product – he's saying they could actually help legalize sports betting in more states. The logic goes like this: if people in states without legal sports betting start using prediction markets (which are currently available everywhere), they might develop an appetite for regulated gambling, putting pressure on lawmakers to open up.

"Prediction markets will grow the total addressable market and help increase the reach of sports markets to users in states without legal online sportsbook options," Jackson explained. "We are exceptionally well-positioned to harness this opportunity given the nationwide strength of the FanDuel brand and our sports betting expertise."

This isn't just Flutter talking its own book, by the way. DraftKings Inc (DKNG) has been making similar noises about prediction markets being a growth opportunity rather than a competitive threat. But the market reaction to Flutter's results suggests investors might be taking a "show me" attitude toward this whole prediction market thesis.

Meanwhile, the actual business – you know, the one that makes money today – is doing pretty well. Flutter ended the quarter with 15.07 million average monthly players, up 3% year-over-year. The U.S. segment, home to FanDuel, now commands 41% market share for online sportsbooks and 28% for iGaming. U.S. revenue jumped 33% in the fourth quarter, with sportsbook revenue up 35% and iGaming up 32%.

International revenue grew 17%, with iGaming leading the way at 31% growth versus 6% for sportsbook.

"Flutter delivered strong 2025 results," Jackson said, putting a positive spin on the year. "Our unparalleled global scale and ongoing product innovation helped us reach almost 40 million customers across our portfolio of market-leading, local hero brands during the year."

Looking ahead, Flutter sees fiscal 2026 revenue hitting $18.4 billion, which would be 12% growth. They're splitting that as $7.8 billion for the U.S. (up 12%) and $10.6 billion internationally (up 13%). The company also highlighted the 2026 FIFA World Cup as a particular opportunity, given its global reach and strong U.S. market position.

"We enter the year with high confidence and conviction behind our plans," Jackson said.

So you've got this disconnect: management is talking about high confidence and a massive new opportunity in prediction markets, while the stock is hitting new lows because the last quarter wasn't quite good enough. It's the classic tension between near-term execution and long-term vision.

The question for investors is whether prediction markets really are the "most valuable" opportunity Jackson claims, or whether that's just corporate speak for "we need something new to talk about because the core business growth is slowing." Either way, with the stock now trading near $111 versus a 52-week high of over $313, the market has made its short-term judgment pretty clear.