Light & Wonder Financial Results: 2026 Earnings, Cash Flow and Debt

Latest Light & Wonder earnings: Q3 and nine months of 2026

The 4 November 2026 release showed lower quarterly revenue but higher profit and operating cash flow. Comparisons below match Q3 with Q3 and nine months with nine months.

Asterisked measures are non-GAAP definitions supplied by Light & Wonder. All other rows are reported US GAAP amounts or capital expenditure in the company's cash-flow disclosures. The Q3 and nine-month figures are unaudited.

Why did profit improve when quarterly revenue declined? Revenue fell US$17m, but operating expenses declined US$30m, lifting operating income US$13m. Net non-operating expenses also fell US$15m, while income tax expense rose US$9m. Together, these movements raised net income US$19m to US$133m. Lower product, service and payroll-related costs helped; declining sales did not themselves generate higher profit.

For nine months, revenue rose about 1% to US$2,440m while operating income slipped to US$594m. Net income rose 5% to US$305m and operating cash inflow reached US$616m.

This distinction is central to reading Light & Wonder earnings: revenue, accounting profit, management-adjusted performance and cash receipts measure different things.

Light & Wonder annual results: 2023 to 2025

The Light & Wonder annual report for FY2025 provides three comparable, audited years of consolidated US GAAP reporting. This longer view makes the quarterly result easier to place in context.

Source: Light & Wonder FY2025 Form 10-K, consolidated statements of operations and cash flows. The 2023 consolidated net-income figure includes US$17m attributable to non-controlling interests; the amount attributable to Light & Wonder shareholders was US$163m.

Revenue grew 10% in 2024 and about 4% in 2025. Operating income rose US$15m in 2025, yet net income fell US$60m to US$276m. The reason lies largely below the operating line: interest expense increased US$21m, net other income dropped from US$48m to US$1m, and income tax expense rose US$4m. The 2024 other-income figure included a US$28m gain on asset sales. Those movements outweighed the improvement in operating profit.

Operating cash flow nevertheless rose to US$794m. FY2025 Consolidated AEBITDA was US$1,443m, not the US$683m GAAP operating income or a cash balance.

The acquisition of Grover's charitable gaming business was completed on 16 May 2025, so its contribution to FY2025 reflects only the post-acquisition period. SciPlay, meanwhile, was already consolidated before the remaining minority stake was purchased in 2023. The Grover acquisition and earlier divestments explain why comparability requires more than matching two headline totals.

Which segments explain the results?

The three reporting segments serve different customers and revenue models.

Gaming remained largest. Q3 revenue fell about 1% as weaker systems hardware sales offset growth in gaming operations and machine sales. Nine-month Gaming revenue grew 2%, partly because Grover contributed throughout 2026's reported period but only from May in 2025.

SciPlay revenue fell 12% in Q3 to US$173m and 10% over nine months. Management cited softer social casino demand, partly offset by direct-to-consumer growth. SciPlay's virtual-item purchases are not UK real-money casino winnings.

iGaming revenue grew 13% in Q3 to US$97m and 15% over nine months to US$280m, driven principally by North American activity and first-party content. It was the fastest-growing segment in percentage terms.

US$31.7bn of wagers processed through the online platform is not Light & Wonder revenue; Q3 iGaming revenue was US$97m. See how Light & Wonder makes money for the supplier/operator distinction.

Profit, AEBITDA and cash flow are different measures

The most revealing part of the 2026 financial results is the reconciliation between cash generated by operations and the company's adjusted free cash flow. These numbers are connected, but they cannot be used as synonyms.

GAAP net income is the bottom line after relevant costs, interest and tax. Operating income is before non-operating financing and tax items. Consolidated AEBITDA is management's non-GAAP performance measure, adding back specified expenses such as depreciation, financing, certain restructuring costs and share-based compensation. It may help compare operating trends, but it is not a replacement for the statutory accounts.

For the nine months ended 30 September 2026, the company's reported cash bridge is:

Source: 4 November 2026 results release, “Reconciliation of Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities to Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow”. Both free-cash-flow measures are non-GAAP.

Two points matter. First, simply subtracting capital expenditure from operating cash produces US$369m, not the issuer's defined US$393m free cash flow. The additional licence payments and restricted-cash adjustment explain the difference. Secondly, adding back US$137m of legal settlements and related payments, together with US$15m of strategic costs, produces adjusted free cash flow of US$545m. An adjusted add-back does not make a cash payment disappear.

For Q3 alone, both free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow were US$181m. The nine-month adjustment is more substantial because it includes specified cash costs incurred earlier in the year. In my view, the unadjusted reconciliation is particularly valuable when assessing how much financial flexibility remains after unusual but real cash outflows.

How much debt and liquidity does Light & Wonder have?

At 30 September 2026, the group reported US$4,981m of debt on the balance sheet, against US$5,019m of outstanding principal. The US$38m difference represents net unamortised discounts, premiums and financing costs. It is not a second loan.

The formula is straightforward: US$5,019m − US$139m = US$4,880m net debt. Likewise, US$1,000m less US$70m drawn and US$10m in letters of credit leaves US$920m available under the revolver; adding US$139m cash gives US$1,059m of liquidity. This is not a claim that US$1,059m was held in cash.

The debt has different maturity dates. Principal outstanding included approximately US$770m Term Loan A due 2028, US$2,124m Term Loan B due 2029, US$500m of 2029 notes, US$70m drawn under a revolver due 2030, US$550m of 2031 notes, US$1,000m of 2033 notes, and a small other balance. This schedule matters more than treating the total as though it all falls due tomorrow.

Management reported net debt leverage of 3.3× at 30 September 2026, based on US$4,880m net debt and US$1,498m of trailing 12-month Consolidated AEBITDA. That compares with 3.4× at 30 June 2026 and 3.5× at the end of 2025. The group stated that it complied with its financial covenants at the September reporting date.

Its aim to bring the ratio below 3.0× in the first half of 2027 remains a management target, not a result already achieved. Liquidity, interest costs, repayments, litigation payments and capital investment could all affect the path. Our wider financial and regulatory risks analysis covers those exposures.

What the figures mean for financial resilience

My reading is cautiously balanced. Light & Wonder has demonstrated cash-generating capacity, and iGaming growth provides a favourable offset to weaker SciPlay demand. Nevertheless, the group remains leveraged, and its cash must support gaming-machine investment, debt obligations and any exceptional liabilities that actually require payment.

The latest quarter illustrates the benefit of looking past the revenue headline. A 2% decline in sales coexisted with a 17% rise in net income and a 28% rise in operating cash flow. But the nine-month operating profit was slightly lower, and one business segment was contracting. It would be too neat to describe every division as growing or every profitability measure as improving.

Nine-month operating cash flow increased US$141m to US$616m. Working-capital movements, excluding acquisitions, had a US$75m negative effect compared with US$226m negative in the equivalent 2025 period, an improvement of US$151m. That timing-related swing is larger than the total increase in operating cash flow. The cash inflow was real, but the same working-capital benefit should not be assumed to recur.

Management's FY2026 outlook, published with Q3 results, expected full-year Consolidated AEBITDA growth towards the lower end of its previous mid-to-high single-digit range. That was a forecast, not a fourth-quarter result. In a subsequent update, I would check whether SciPlay stabilised, how much of iGaming growth was sustained, whether working-capital timing reversed and whether net leverage continued to fall.

This page assesses corporate finances, not whether an individual should trade the company's shares. Market pricing, valuation and shareholder-return questions belong to Light & Wonder shares and market outlook.

UK accounts are not consolidated group earnings

The British subsidiary LNW Gaming UK Limited (Companies House 05184120) files its own accounts in pounds sterling, using the FRS 101 reporting framework. Those statements are not a breakdown of the entire group's UK revenue, and their figures must not be added to the US-dollar consolidated totals.

These figures are from the subsidiary's own FY2025 statement of comprehensive income. The turnover is approximately £99.4m, not US$99.4m, and the reported loss is not a measure of all Light & Wonder activity in Britain. The group's brands and subsidiaries and market reach and licences need to be examined separately from this accounting perimeter.

Where to find the official annual and quarterly reports

The definitive full-year source is Light & Wonder's FY2025 Annual Report and Form 10-K, covering the year ended 31 December 2025 and providing the audited consolidated statements. For the latest interim numbers, use the Q3/9M 2026 Form 10-Q and the 4 November 2026 earnings release, including the non-GAAP reconciliation schedules. All are official company disclosures; they serve different reporting purposes.

For financial comparisons, check four labels before using any number: legal entity, reporting period, currency and accounting definition. A third-party website's “earnings” may mean pre-tax profit, while a company's adjusted earnings measure may exclude items recorded in its US GAAP net income. Neither should be silently substituted for the other.

My conclusion

Light & Wonder generates substantial operating cash, but its performance remains uneven. iGaming is growing, SciPlay is contracting, and debt commitments remain significant. The next test is whether cash flow stays strong enough to support investment and reduce leverage after exceptional payments. As of 9 November 2026, the latest reported period ended 30 September 2026.

Primary evidence consulted - Light & Wonder, Annual Report and Form 10-K for the year ended 31 December 2025, filed 24 February 2026; consolidated statements and debt notes. - Light & Wonder, Form 10-Q for the three and nine months ended 30 September 2026; segment disclosure, cash-flow statement, debt Note 10 and liquidity discussion. - Light & Wonder, Third Quarter 2026 Results, released 4 November 2026, including the Consolidated AEBITDA, net-debt and free-cash-flow reconciliations. - LNW Gaming UK Limited, Annual Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2025, Companies House company number 05184120; individual financial statements.