Light & Wonder, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2023 Results

Delivered Consolidated Revenue Growth of 17% Year-Over-Year with Strong Cash Flows
Achieved Double-Digit Growth Across all Three of our Businesses with 18% Gaming Revenue Growth and Record Revenue in SciPlay and iGaming
Board of Directors Approved Secondary Listing on the Australian Securities Exchange

LAS VEGAS — May 9, 2023 — Light & Wonder, Inc. (NASDAQ: LNW) (“Light & Wonder,” “L&W,” or the“Company”) today reported results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023.

We entered 2023 with strong momentum and delivered another quarter of double-digit topline growth with strong cashflows continuing to execute on our strategic plan and progress toward our long-term financial targets. Consolidated revenue grew 17%, driven by growth across all of our businesses, including another quarter of record revenues for
SciPlay and iGaming:

• Gaming revenue increased 18% to $419 million compared to the prior year period, primarily driven by continued strength in Gaming machine sales, which increased 53%, and strong performance in Gaming operations and systems.
• SciPlay achieved record revenue of $186 million, an 18% increase compared to the prior year period, driven by the core social casino business, which delivered strong payer metrics and once again outpaced the market and gained share.
• iGaming revenue reached record quarterly revenue of $65 million, a 10% increase from the prior year period, primarily driven by continued growth in the U.S. market.

Matt Wilson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Light & Wonder, said, “We’re off to a strong start in 2023, delivering on all key metrics and once again driving double-digit revenue growth across all three of our businesses. Our strategy and disciplined investments are driving enhanced returns as we continue to develop and execute on our robust product roadmap, building off the strong momentum that we saw in 2022.

The teams executed several notable wins and key launches in the quarter, and we have a full pipeline of games that support progress toward our long-term targets. With leading talent, technology and products, we continue to strengthen our position as the leading cross-platform global games company.”

Connie James, Chief Financial Officer of Light & Wonder, added, “We continue to capitalize on the strong growth opportunities that we see in our markets, and drive margin enhancement across the business as we remain focused on operational excellence. This quarter demonstrates Light & Wonder’s favorable financial profile with strong topline growth flowing to the bottom line, and importantly strong cash conversion, enabling us to invest in future sustainable growth.

We continue to focus on generating significant cash flow while maintaining our balanced and opportunistic approach to capital management and a healthy balance sheet to enhance value for our shareholders.”

LEVERAGE, CAPITAL RETURN, AND STRATEGY UPDATE

• Net debt leverage ratio⁽¹⁾ of 3.1x, within our targeted net debt leverage ratio⁽¹⁾ range of 2.5x to 3.5x, as of March 31, 2023, a decrease of 0.2x from December 31, 2022.
• Returned $437 million of capital to shareholders through the repurchase of approximately 7.6 million shares of L&W common stock since the initiation of the program through May 4, 2023, representing 58% of total program authorization.
• Preparing for potential Australian Securities Exchange (“ASX”) secondary listing — the Company’s Board of Directors has approved proceeding with a secondary listing on the ASX, in addition to the Company’s existing primary Nasdaq listing. The Board believes there are substantial potential benefits for the Company and its shareholders in pursuing a secondary listing on the ASX, including enhancing the Company’s profile in Australia, one of the leading markets for the Company’s Gaming business, and providing the Company access to new long-term Australian institutional investors that would complement its strong existing base of shareholders in the U.S. and Australia.

SUMMARY RESULTS
Unless otherwise noted, amounts, percentages and discussion included below reflect the results of operations and financial condition of the Company’s continuing operations, which includes its Gaming, SciPlay and iGaming businesses. We have reflected our former Lottery business (disposed during the second quarter of 2022) and Sports Betting business (disposed during the third quarter of 2022) (collectively referred to as the “Divestitures”) as discontinued operations.