Light & Wonder, Inc. (NASDAQ:LNW) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Light & Wonder, Inc. (NASDAQ:LNW) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $106.60.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Light & Wonder from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Light & Wonder from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Maxim Group started coverage on shares of Light & Wonder in a research report on Monday, August 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $144.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $114.00 price objective on shares of Light & Wonder in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their target price on Light & Wonder from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th.

Light & Wonder Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LNW opened at $92.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.90. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $105.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.55. The company has a market cap of $8.20 billion, a PE ratio of 38.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.77. Light & Wonder has a fifty-two week low of $67.71 and a fifty-two week high of $115.00.

Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.14). Light & Wonder had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 40.51%. The business had revenue of $818.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $798.09 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Light & Wonder will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Light & Wonder declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Light & Wonder

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Light & Wonder in the fourth quarter worth about $1,361,000. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Light & Wonder by 1,103.6% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $817,000 after purchasing an additional 9,127 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Light & Wonder by 1,626.9% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 8,807 shares of the company’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 8,297 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in Light & Wonder during the 4th quarter valued at $153,000. Finally, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Light & Wonder by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,299,670 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,716,000 after purchasing an additional 47,940 shares in the last quarter. 88.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Light & Wonder

Light & Wonder, Inc operates as a cross-platform games company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Gaming, SciPlay, and iGaming segments. The Gaming segment sells game content and gaming machine; video gaming terminals; video lottery terminals, including conversion kits and spare parts; and table products, including automatic card shufflers, deck checkers, table roulette chip sorters and other land-based table gaming equipment.