2025 was “a pivotal year for Light & Wonder,” according to CEO Matt Wilson. He delivered this opinion during the company’s fourth-quarter-earnings call, late on February 24.
The call was Light & Wonder’s first since transitioning from a United States-listed company to being traded solely on the ASX in Australia. About the change, Wilson said, “Early market feedback has been encouraging.”
The quarter was not without its bumps. SciPlay, Light & Wonder’s social-gaming subsidiary, saw its fourth-quarter revenues slip from $204 million to $195 million. It went from $821 million in 2024 to $794 million in 2025.
Conversely, igaming revenue went up from $78 million in the final quarter of 2024 to $94.4 million a year later. It rose from $299 million to $337 million for the full year.
In the U.S. and Canada, Light & Wonder’s installed base of slot machines leapt 42 percent year-over-year, reaching 48,326 devices. The average daily revenue was up four percent, for $47 per machine.
International machine replacements shot up 57 percent to 5,361. New-unit shipments outside North America jumped 29 percent to 12,361 machines.
Newly acquired Grover Gaming brought $102 million in revenue, along with 1,000 or so new deployments. It entered Indiana in the waning days of December 2025 and early performance was “consistent with our expectations,” according to Wilson.
Other non-Light & Wonder territories to which Wilson was looking for growth were Maryland and New York. The latter was also contemplating regulation of charitable gambling (as was Maine), providing more potential opportunities for expansion.
Much of the conversation with stock analysts was occupied by discussion of artificial intelligence and what it meant for the game maker. Wilson sees AI “as a growth enabler [and] a significant opportunity. By leaning into AI we can improve both the quantum and [quality] of games. We are excited to be taking leadership in this arena.”
Wilson intends to leverage Light & Wonder’s game library, which he called “the Coca-Cola of the gaming industry” for AI purposes. He would also use the technology to accelerate platform development, improve the quality and hit rate of games, and drive business efficiencies.
Aristocrat Leisure was never mentioned during the call, save as “a peer dispute.” Referring to litigation-related write-offs, CFO Oliver Chow said, “Absent the charges, profitability was strong.”
Chow added that the company’s earnings per share did not reflect its share-repurchase program, which “sets us up nicely as we move into 2026.” He said he further expected net growth in Light & Wonder’s installed base in North America, in addition to the amplification provided by Grover.
“We will continue to reinvest in the business in a targeted and efficient manner,” Chow promised. He added that 2026 would be front-loaded with costs, particularly in regard to expansion on the Grover front.
Wilson restated guidance toward 2028 that included targets of $10.55 earnings per share and $2 billion annual cash flow. Headwinds included a 40 percent tax rate, newly imposed on igaming in the United Kingdom, offset by tailwinds that included licensing in the United Arab Emirates.
The CEO added that he was “very encouraged” by U.S. political prospects for expansion. “Unregulated gray-market games are a huge problem,” he allowed, one that Missouri and Pennsylvania were currently confronting. Wilson said he hoped that both states would implement regulations on slot routes similar to those employed in Illinois. Pennsylvania had, he thought, very high potential, Missouri slightly less so.
Of Light & Wonder’s gaming-operations business, Wilson opined, “It’s almost metronomic, the results,” including 700 North American installations. He guided to 500 more in 2026’s first quarter. “This is all underpinned by incremental improvements in game performance,” said the CEO, adding that Light & Wonder’s products were “getting better and better.”
Looking back on springtime tariff fears, Wilson said the industry “saw a bit of concern. I think the industry’s holding up nicely,” however, especially in North American regional markets. “It’s looking like a similar setup,” Wilson said of 2026 prospects, with casinos expected to increase their replacement cycle. “It looks like a very buoyant market,” he concluded.
