Light & Wonder, Inc. Reports 13% Revenue Growth in First Quarter 2024

"We started 2024 on a strong note, delivering a 12th consecutive quarter of year-over-year consolidated revenue growth and generating strong cash flow, while continuing to execute on our robust content roadmap and cross-platform strategy. Consolidated revenue grew 13%, driven by continued double-digit revenue growth across all of our businesses, resulting in robust earnings growth as we continue to progress towards our long-term financial targets":

• Gaming revenue increased to $476 million, up 14% compared to the prior year period, primarily driven by global Gaming machine sales growth, which increased 30%, coupled with growth across Gaming operations and Gaming systems.
• SciPlay revenue grew to a quarterly revenue record of $206 million, an 11% increase from the prior year period, driven by the core social casino business, which continues to outpace the market and gain share on strong payer metrics.
• iGaming revenue increased 14% to a quarterly revenue record of $74 million, primarily reflecting continued momentum in the U.S. and international markets.

Matt Wilson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Light & Wonder, said, “Our strong momentum continued into 2024 across the business with our compelling global product offerings driving Game Sales growth in North American adjacent markets and in International markets led by Australia and Asia. SciPlay and iGaming both reached record revenue levels yet again with consistent double-digit year-over-year growth. The performance in the quarter validates our execution plan and we expect growth to be further enhanced by key hardware and content launches in both our land-based and digital markets throughout the year. Our differentiated product roadmap and targeted commercial strategy enable us to capitalize on growth opportunities beyond our solidified core businesses. We will continue to execute on our initiatives to deliver sustainable growth underpinned by our robust product portfolio and world-class talent.”

Oliver Chow, Chief Financial Officer of Light & Wonder, added, “We remain on a healthy growth trajectory with six consecutive quarters of double-digit revenue growth across Gaming, SciPlay, and iGaming, a testament to the power of our R&D engine, as we continue to deploy engaging content enjoyed by players across all of our platforms. Our financial performance highlights the strength of our team across all of our segments. We will continue to reinvest back into the business to further scale revenue and profitability. Given our strong growth and the highly cash generative nature of our business, we plan to further enhance value through our share repurchase program, while maintaining the rigor of our strategic capital allocation plan.”

LEVERAGE AND CAPITAL RETURN UPDATE

Principal face value of debt outstanding(1) was $3.9 billion, translating to a net debt leverage ratio(2) of 0x as of March 31, 2024. Our net debt leverage ratio(2) decreased by 0.1x from December 31, 2023, and remained within our targeted net debt leverage ratio(2) range of 2.5x to 3.5x.
Returned $25 million of capital to shareholders through the repurchase of approximately 2 million shares of L&W common stock during the quarter. Since the initiation of the program, we have returned $600 million of capital to shareholders through the repurchase of approximately 9.7 million shares of L&W common stock, representing 80% of total program authorization.