Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.18, reports. The business had revenue of $817.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $826.65 million. Light & Wonder had a net margin of 9.30% and a return on equity of 50.89%.

Light & Wonder Trading Up 2.7 %

LNW opened at $94.75 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $98.59 and its 200-day moving average is $99.86. Light & Wonder has a 52-week low of $76.52 and a 52-week high of $115.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.75.

Light & Wonder announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on LNW. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Light & Wonder from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Light & Wonder from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Maxim Group started coverage on Light & Wonder in a report on Monday, August 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $144.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Light & Wonder from $108.00 to $100.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on Light & Wonder from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.36.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Light & Wonder

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNW. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 128.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 910,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,472,000 after buying an additional 511,081 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Light & Wonder by 573.3% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 579,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,761,000 after acquiring an additional 493,295 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Light & Wonder by 102.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 767,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,320,000 after purchasing an additional 388,781 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,452,052 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,745,000 after purchasing an additional 324,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of Light & Wonder during the third quarter worth about $25,277,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.08% of the company’s stock.

About Light & Wonder

Light & Wonder, Inc operates as a cross-platform games company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Gaming, SciPlay, and iGaming segments. The Gaming segment sells game content and gaming machine; video gaming terminals; video lottery terminals, including conversion kits and spare parts; and table products, including automatic card shufflers, deck checkers, table roulette chip sorters and other land-based table gaming equipment.