Light & Wonder to delist from Nasdaq

Executives of Light & Wonder employed their second-quarter-earnings call to announce their board’s decision to pursue delisting from the Nasdaq exchange, effective at the end of November. Following the Nasdaq pullout, Light & Wonder will be traded solely on the ASX in Australia. “This comes off the back of an extended consultation process,” said CEO Matt Wilson.

Following the move, Light & Wonder “will hold considerable liquidity in a deep and existing market,” Wilson continued. “We have been actively engaged to make sure this goes as smoothly as possible.”

A stock-buyback authorization has been increased to $1.5 billion, with $950 million remaining. Much of that will go toward the Nasdaq withdrawal. “We think it’s a bright future for the organization,” Wilson said. He teased “exciting growth plans,” on which he did not elaborate.

The CEO hailed “continued earnings growth across the quarter. We see continued momentum in the industry.” Of the Grover Gaming purchase, he said, “We’re pleased with the progress of integration,” including a new Grover headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Grover was expected to contribute $65 million to cash flow in its first full year and the cost of getting Grover into Indiana “will deliver fantastic results in the coming years,” Wilson predicted. “We’re in a great position to get to the next guidance that we’ve put out. We’re not doing anything silly to manufacture results.”

Despite the earnings growth, sales were said to be down. Wilson blamed this on the launch of a new cabinet in Australia and on operator caution in North America: “Land-based operators are navigating a more complex capital-decision cycle than usual. Things are largely turning positive,” he continued, following a tariff-related panic in the spring. “That was reflected in the Eilers survey yesterday.”

Wilson said Light & Wonder continued to expand production in Mexico, mainly to service the Mexican and Canadian markets.

“We continue to trend above industry average,” Wilson said of SciPlay’s performance, with 12 percent market share. He allowed that there had been top-line impact attributable to sweepstakes games. This was less the case in states which had taken anti-sweepstakes action.

In the igaming sphere, Light & Wonder’s Huff ’n More Puff game was said to have helped drive a 25 percent boost in North American revenue. The company, Wilson said, would be focusing more on such proprietary igaming content going forward.

“We have a robust, regionalized, road map planned for the rest of the year,” Wilson added. This included expansion into the Philippines. He also hailed new game-design hires, saying, “We’re investing with an eye on the future.”

Wilson didn’t have “a large amount of updates” on pending litigation, save that trials are expected to commence in the first half of 2026. He felt that Aristocrat Leisure’s case against Light & Wonder had been narrowed to the Dragon Train and Jewel of the Dragon games, both withdrawn from the market.

As for one of Light & Wonder’s star games, Wilson was queried about reports that Huff ’n Puff was fading. He replied, “845 incremental adds was an incredible result. It was one of the top five quarters we’ve had.”

Wilson allowed, “Like many other games, it atrophies over time.” He then pivoted to highlighting oncoming products, including “next-frontier stuff” that would be unveiled at Global Gaming Expo in October.

Asked about the effect of the newly passed federal budget and tax revisions (which favor investment in shorter-lived assets like slot machines), CFO Oliver Chow said, “That certainly allows certain items to be expensed immediately.”

Chow predicted that it also “will support demand in the second half” and for several years to come. For Light & Wonder, the tax savings would be between $40 million and $50 million a year.