Casino equipment and online games provider Light & Wonder Inc reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of US$790 million, a 2.1-percent increase from a year earlier, according to a Thursday announcement.
The company said it delivered a “solid start to 2026”, with gaming operations and iGaming serving as the “primary growth drivers” during the quarter.
Light & Wonder, however, posted net income of US$52 million in the three months to March 31, compared with a profit of US$82 million in the prior-year period. That represented a 36.6-percent year-on-year decline, “reflecting approximately US$50 million in legal reserve contingencies associated with certain legacy legal matters,” the company said, referring to various legal proceedings in which it has been involved.
The firm had posted a net loss of US$15 million in the three months to December 31, 2025, compared with a profit of US$107 million in the prior-year period. That was partially related to a US$128-million legal settlement charge associated with the resolution of a dispute with market rival Aristocrat Leisure Ltd.
Light & Wonder – which in November moved to a sole primary listing on the Australian Stock Exchange – had said in mid-January that it had agreed to pay US$127.5 million to rival Aristocrat to resolve a dispute concerning the alleged infringement of Aristocrat trade secrets related to Light & Wonder’s “Dragon Train” game.
For first-quarter 2026, Light & Wonder’s consolidated adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) stood at US$327 million, up 5.1 percent from a year earlier.
Light & Wonder said it expected full-year 2026 consolidated adjusted EBITDA growth “to be in the mid- to high-single-digit” percentage range, as the firm continues to execute its long-term strategy.
“We expect a similar shape of earnings momentum to full-year 2025, weighted towards the second half of the year and reflective of our growing recurring revenue base, the timing of investments, and the timing of capital expenditures of our customer base,” it added.
The group has three main segments: land-based gaming; the digital games unit SciPlay; and iGaming.
During the first quarter, all three businesses delivered “another quarter of segment adjusted EBITDA growth and adjusted EBITDA margin expansion,” the gaming supplier said.
Matt Wilson, Light & Wonder’s president and chief executive, said in prepared remarks that the company was “seeing the benefits” of its “continued investment in studios and content”, as the group’s franchises drove “strong game performance across the portfolio”.
He added: “Gaming momentum remained robust, with our North American premium installed base growing for the 23rd consecutive quarter, and Grover continued its expansion into the recently legalised Indiana market.”
In May last year, Light & Wonder paid US$850 million to acquire the charitable gaming assets – known as Grover Charitable Gaming – of U.S.-based Grover Gaming Inc and G2 Gaming Inc.
Segment performance
First-quarter gaming revenue increased by 3.4 percent year-on-year, to US$512 million, “driven by gaming operations revenue”, which increased 38.2 percent year-on-year to US$239 million, and table products, which rose 23.5 percent to US$63 million, the group said.
Gaming machine sales revenue for the first three months of 2026 decreased by 25.0 percent, to US$156 million, “primarily reflecting the timing of international and North America video lottery terminal shipments in the prior-year period, while average selling price per unit remained resilient at around US$19,700,” according to Light & Wonder.
Globally, the company shipped 7,200 new gaming machine units in the first quarter, compared with 9,770 units a year earlier. These included 2,176 units sold in international markets, including Asia Pacific, compared with 4,001 units in the prior-year period.
It was revealed last month that Phil Stormonth had been named senior director of sales for Asia at Light & Wonder, with effect from April.
First-quarter revenue in Light & Wonder’s iGaming segment grew by 18.2 percent year-on-year, to US$91 million, while SciPlay revenue fell 7.4 percent, to US$187 million.
The group’s net debt stood at US$5.2 billion as of March 31, the firm said.
Oliver Chow, Light & Wonder’s chief financial officer, said in commentary included in Thursday’s announcement: “Our first-quarter results reflect continued margin expansion across the businesses and scaling cash flow, driving the improving cash conversion profile of our business, while we make deliberate investments in artificial intelligence and infrastructure that we believe will compound meaningfully over time to support both growth and efficiency.”
