Strong performance from its Gold Fish Casino game buoyed SciPlay’s third quarter. The Las Vegas-based maker of games for mobile and web platforms had earnings per share that topped Wall Street forecasts, but revenue that fell from a year earlier and missed.
In a 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, SciPlay said it earned $37 million, or 24 cents per share, for the three months ended Sept. 30, up from net income of $35.1 million, or 23 cents per share, a year earlier.
The latest earnings topped the 23-cents-per-share average forecast of analysts surveyed by Seeking Alpha.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, a cash-flow measure that excludes one-time costs, fell 9.3% to $44.7 million from $49.3 million a year earlier, driven primarily by lower revenue.
Revenue fell 3.4% to $146.6 million from $151.2 million and missed the $154.4 million average forecast of Seeking Alpha-polled analysts.
SciPlay, which was spun off from Scientific Games in 2019, said average monthly revenue per paying user was $93.67, above pre-COVID-19 levels, and average revenue per daily active user rose 9.5% to 69 cents from 63 cents year to year.
SciPlay Chief Executive Officer Josh Wilson said the Gold Fish performance and launch of a redesigned Quick Hit buoyed his company.
“With Jackpot Party rebounding, we expect SciPlay to return to both year-over-year and sequential growth in the fourth quarter,” he said.
Wilson added that Project X, a new casual game SciPlay’s in-house design team plans to deliver in 2022’s second half, is tracking ahead of schedule.
On July 15, Scientific Games submitted a proposal to acquire the 19% of SciPlay it didn’t already own. Under the deal, SciPlay would receive 0.25 shares of Scientific Games common stock for each share of SciPlay Class A common stock.
The transaction is subject to the negotiation and execution of a mutually acceptable merger agreement. SciPlay’s three-man special committee of independent directors, William Thompson, Gerald Cohen, and Michael Marchetti, is examining Scientific Games’ proposal.
Scientific Games shares rose 26 cents, or 1.33%, Tuesday to close at $19.81 on the Nasdaq. The share price has risen 36.3% in 2021.
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