Gaming equipment and services group Light & Wonder saw a slight contraction in its consolidated revenue for the second quarter of the year, due to more cautious purchasing behavior and delayed capital expenditure among some customers – impacting the timing of game sales.
According to the group’s financial results published on August 6th, the slight contraction in revenue broke a 16-quarter streak of yearly increases. Consolidated revenue totaled $809 million, down by 1 percent yearly.
However, the group’s consolidated AEBITDA rose by 7 percent year-on-year, marking 14 consecutive quarters of growth, topping out at $352 million.
Profit, or adjusted NPATA, grew by 4 percent yearly during the quarter, reaching $135 million.
Segment performance
The group’s Gaming arm continued to be its largest contributor, despite seeing a slight yearly contraction of 2 percent in its revenue, to $528 million. However, adjusted AEBITDA for the segment was up by 3 percent yearly, to $280 million.
Under the gaming wing, Gaming Operations performed headily, up by 19 percent yearly in terms of revenue, to $209 million. This helped off set the 16 percent drop in gaming machine sales ($191 million) and an 11 percent drop in gaming systems revenue (73 million). Table products revenue was up by 2 percent yearly, to $55 million.
The group highlights that the gaming operations increase was led by the addition of 845 units in North America’s installed base, while the drop in machine sales was due to the global macroeconomic uncertainty, timing of the hardware refresh cycle in Australia and the timing of sales into Asia, among other factors. Regarding the downturn in systems, this was due to ‘elevated hardware replacement sales in the prior year offset by increasing software revenue. Table products’ revenue rise resulted from ‘strong international sales performance’.
Looking at SciPlay – the group’s social gaming arm – revenue was also slightly down, by 2 percent, to $200 million in 2Q25, however AEBITDA rose by 6 percent yearly, to $74 million. Average revenue per daily active user (ARPDAU) increased by 4 percent yearly during the quarter, to a record $1.08 billion, while the Average monthly revenue per paying user (AMRPPU) increased 10 percent to $128.96.
The group’s direct-to-consumer platformer generated some $35 million, amounting to 18 percent of SciPlay’s revenue during the quarter.
Looking at iGaming, L&W saw record revenue of $81 million, boosted by continued growth in North America. AEBITDA increased by 17 percent, hitting $28 million. Wagers processed through the group’s OPENGAMING system were up by 22 percent yearly, reaching $26.6 billion in 2Q25.
Executive comments
Overall, L&W executives were upbeat about the results and future prospects. President and CEO Matt Wilson noted that, “We remain committed to R&D investment to further proliferate our high-performing content across channels and continue to realize the benefits of strong game performance. Our North American installed base and revenue per day increased as we continue to execute on the key initiatives to both expand and extend the longevity of our fleet for maximum value”.
Olver Chow, CFO of L&W, also added, “Our financial performance in the second quarter underscores the benefit of our diversified business model and the disciplined execution of the team. Margin expansion was meaningful, reflecting business performance as well as optimization of resource allocation across digital, content and platform innovation”.
Grover acquisition and Nasdaq delisting
During the quarter, the group also finalized its billion-dollar acquisition of Grover Gaming’s charitable gaming assets, encompassing $850 million in cash and a four-year revenue-based earn-out of up to $200 million in cash.
Speaking of the benefits, CEO Matt Wilson highlighted, “I am pleased that the integration of Grover is progressing ahead of schedule, and we are very well-positioned in the charitable gaming business with a range of growth opportunities ahead of us”.
The L&W board has also approved its delisting from the Nasdaq – which is expected to end by November 2025, making its sole primary listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). The group notes that this ‘aligns with a large part of our investor’, while noting that it will announce the final timeline and dates of transition ‘in coming months’.
Speaking of the shift, L&W’s Chair of the Board of Directors, Jamie Odell, shared, “Our Board has determined that moving to a sole primary ASX listing is in the best long-term interests of our shareholders. We offer investors a great opportunity to invest in a global growth company, with strong fundamentals, leading market positions in our core segments, growing margins, and strong recurring revenues and operating cash flows”.
