Gaming supplier Light & Wonder, Inc. announced that its board of directors has approved a new three-year share repurchase program for the repurchase of up to $1 billion in the company’s outstanding common stock through June 12, 2027.
The prior share repurchase program authorized the company to repurchase up to $750 million of its common shares, and was set to expire on February 26, 2025.
As of June 13, the company has exhausted the full $750 million share repurchase authorization and purchased 11.2 million common shares, or 11.5 percent of shares outstanding at the inception of the program. The average purchase price of $66.72 per share represents a 28 percent discount to the closing price of $92.35 the day before the announcement.
“I am pleased to announce that the board has approved a new, upsized share repurchase program as we continue to successfully execute our growth strategy and return meaningful capital to our shareholders,” said Matt Wilson, CEO of Light & Wonder. “With strong operating performance continuing across the business, we remain on track to achieve our $1.4 billion consolidated AEBITDA target for 2025 while continuing to invest for the future.”
Oliver Chow, chief financial officer of Light & Wonder, added, “Given the continued momentum in the business, and our March 31, 2024 net debt leverage ratio at the middle of our target range of 2.5X-3.5X, we have significant optionality with regards to capital allocation. Our prior program was an effective value creation tool, and moving forward, the new program will allow us to deliver further value to our shareholders while underscoring our commitment to driving profitable growth and upside beyond 2025.”
The timing and amount of repurchases under the company’s share repurchase program will be determined by the company from time to time at its discretion, based on its evaluation of market conditions, share price, and other factors including potential accretive opportunities for inorganic growth.
