Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW) Given New $90.00 Price Target at Benchmark

Key Points

• Benchmark analysts have reduced the price target for Light & Wonder from $100.00 to $90.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating, indicating a potential upside of 14.72% from the current price.
• Despite the downgrade from Benchmark, other firms like Mizuho and Truist Financial have issued mixed ratings, with Mizuho setting an "underperform" rating and Truist a "buy" rating, showing varied analyst sentiment.
• Light & Wonder reported quarterly earnings of $1.11 per share, missing expectations, with a revenue of $809 million compared to analyst predictions of $851 million, marking a 1.1% decrease year-over-year.

Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by research analysts at Benchmark from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Benchmark's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 2.94% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on LNW. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Light & Wonder from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Light & Wonder from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Light & Wonder from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $108.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Light & Wonder from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $116.00 price objective on shares of Light & Wonder in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Light & Wonder presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $108.10.

Light & Wonder Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of LNW traded up $3.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $87.43. The stock had a trading volume of 1,351,638 shares, compared to its average volume of 943,873. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $92.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.86, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.77. Light & Wonder has a 12-month low of $69.56 and a 12-month high of $115.00. The firm has a market cap of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.21.

Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.14. Light & Wonder had a return on equity of 71.17% and a net margin of 10.89%. The firm had revenue of $809.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $851.29 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. Light & Wonder's quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Light & Wonder will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Light & Wonder

In related news, Director Jamie Odell purchased 8,275 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $78.81 per share, with a total value of $652,152.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,275 shares in the company, valued at $652,152.75. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Antonia Korsanos purchased 8,065 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Sunday, August 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $80.05 per share, for a total transaction of $645,603.25. Following the acquisition, the director owned 22,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,826,340.75. The trade was a 54.68% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Light & Wonder

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LNW. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Light & Wonder by 4,783.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 293 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in shares of Light & Wonder by 198.9% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 269 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 118.5% during the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 437 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 41.8% during the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 604 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 3,861.1% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 713 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.08% of the company's stock.

About Light & Wonder

Light & Wonder, Inc is a cross-platform global games company, which engages in the development of content and digital markets. It operates through the following segments: Gaming, SciPlay, and iGaming. The Gaming segment includes the design, manufacture, marketing, and distribution of portfolio of gaming products and services.