L&W experienced double-digit growth across all its business segments during the three months to 31 March, with its gaming division remaining by far its primary source of revenue.
L8W chief executive and president, Matt Wilson, said this widespread growth was the result of the group’s ongoing strategic plan, which also helped the business progress towards its long-term financial targets.
“We’re off to a strong start in 2023, delivering on all key metrics and once again driving double-digit revenue growth across all three of our businesses,” Wilson said. “Our strategy and disciplined investments are driving enhanced returns as we continue to develop and execute on our robust product roadmap, building off the strong momentum that we saw in 2022.
“The teams executed several notable wins and key launches in the quarter, and we have a full pipeline of games that support progress toward our long-term targets. With leading talent, technology and products, we continue to strengthen our position as the leading cross-platform global games company.”
Results
Revenue in the first quarter amounted to $670m (£531m/€611m), up from $572m in the corresponding period last year. Of this total, $477m came from services and $193m product sales.
Breaking down performance by segment, gaming revenue increased 18% to $419m, driven by continued momentum in gaming machine sales, which were up 53% to $158m.
Gaming operations revenue edged up from $155m to $160m, helped by growth within the group’s North American installed base and average daily revenue per unit, while gaming services revenue climbed 8% to $55m and table products revenue was level at $46m.
Revenue from the SciPlay business jumped 18% to $186m, the highest-ever quarterly figure from this segment. L&W said that this was driven by its core social casino business, which delivered strong payer metrics.
Turning to igaming and revenue was up 10% year-on-year to $65m, helped by growth in the US market, where revenue was up 34%. L&W noted the impact of launches of its land-based original content and scaling third party aggregation on its platform in the US, while further growth is expected following the roll-out of a new live casino in Michigan later this year.
In terms of spending, operating expenses were up 6.8% at $568m, as expenses grew in all areas with the exception of restructuring and depreciation, amortisation and impairments.
L&W also noted $76m in finance-related costs, meaning pre-tax profit for the quarter was $26m, compared to a $64m loss at the same point in 2022. The group received $1m in tax benefits, leaving a net profit of $27m, in contrast to the $67m loss posted in Q1 of last year.
However, when taking away $5m of net profit attributable to non-controlling interest, as well as accounting for $95m in net profit from discontinued operations that were included in the 2022, this meant net profit was marginally down from $26m to $22m.
In addition, L&W said consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the quarter was 23% higher year-on-year at $249m.
“We continue to capitalise on the strong growth opportunities that we see in our markets, and drive margin enhancement across the business as we remain focused on operational excellence,” L&W chief financial officer Connie James said.
“This quarter demonstrates Light & Wonder’s favourable financial profile with strong top-line growth flowing to the bottom line, and importantly strong cash conversion, enabling us to invest in future sustainable growth.
“We continue to focus on generating significant cash flow while maintaining our balanced and opportunistic approach to capital management and a healthy balance sheet to enhance value for our shareholders.”