Playtika Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Playtika reported a solid Q1 with revenue of $744.7 million, and management said the company is seeing momentum across both its legacy games and newer growth areas. It also raised full-year guidance for revenue and adjusted EBITDA.
• Disney Solitaire was the standout driver, generating $123.3 million in revenue and helping SuperPlay validate Playtika’s acquisition strategy. Management expects SuperPlay to turn positive adjusted EBITDA in Q2.
• The company’s direct-to-consumer business hit a record $291.8 million in quarterly revenue, while the portfolio continues shifting toward casual games, which now make up 76% of the business. Playtika also said Slotomania is stabilizing, though it is not promising renewed growth in the mature social casino segment.

Playtika NASDAQ: PLTK reported a stronger-than-expected start to 2026, driven by rapid growth at its SuperPlay studio, record direct-to-consumer revenue and improving stability in parts of its legacy portfolio, executives said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.

The mobile gaming company posted first-quarter revenue of $744.7 million, up 9.7% sequentially and 5.5% from a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA was $125.2 million, representing a 16.8% margin. Playtika reported a net loss of $57.5 million and adjusted net income of $13.6 million.

Chief Executive Robert Antokol called the quarter “a great start of the year” and said the company is seeing momentum across its portfolio. He emphasized that Playtika is allocating capital toward titles with the highest returns, while direct-to-consumer, or DTC, continues to improve unit economics.

“The headline for me is Disney Solitaire,” Antokol said. “Disney Solitaire has scaled faster than any title in our 15 years history and continues to outperform expectation.”

Disney Solitaire Drives SuperPlay Momentum

Playtika’s SuperPlay studio was a central focus of the call. Disney Solitaire generated $123.3 million in revenue during the quarter, up 72.1% sequentially, according to Chief Financial Officer Tae Lee. Management said the game’s user acquisition returns justified a heavy marketing push in the quarter.

Antokol said SuperPlay is “validating the strategy behind the acquisition,” adding that Playtika is investing in teams capable of building “large, long-lasting franchise” that can compound cash flow over time.

Lee said SuperPlay’s marketing spend was intentionally weighted toward the first half of the year and that the company expects SuperPlay to begin contributing positive adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter. He stressed that first-quarter margin pressure reflected investment timing rather than structural weakness.

In response to a question from UBS analyst Chris Schoell, Lee said Playtika increased spending because returns remained attractive even as marketing outlays rose.

“There was little degradation in the returns associated with that spend,” Lee said. He added that Q1 should not be viewed as the annual run rate for sales and marketing, saying spending is expected to step down as the company moves from a launch-and-scale phase into a more normalized cadence.

DTC Revenue Hits New Record

Playtika’s DTC business reached another quarterly record, with revenue of $291.8 million, up 16.7% sequentially and 62.8% year-over-year. Antokol said the business is now running near a $1.2 billion annual revenue rate.

Management said DTC has become core to how the company operates, not only because it lowers platform fees but also because it gives Playtika more direct tools to engage players. Antokol said DTC provides “a lot of independency” for working with games and testing initiatives that are harder to execute on other platforms.

Lee said recent App Store policy changes have helped as a tailwind, but he emphasized that Playtika has deployed DTC broadly across its portfolio, including SuperPlay titles. He said Bingo Blitz was one of the largest year-over-year contributors to DTC growth.

Portfolio Mix Shifts Toward Casual Games

Antokol said casual games now account for 76% of Playtika’s business, describing the transition as “largely complete.” He said Playtika is now “a casual mobile gaming company with a strong social casino business that generates strong cash flow.”

Lee highlighted several category-leading titles in the portfolio. He said Playtika holds all three top positions in tabletop games with Disney Solitaire, Solitaire Grand Harvest and Domino Dreams. He also said June’s Journey is the No. 1 title in hidden object, Bingo Blitz is the No. 1 bingo game, Dice Dreams is a top-three coin looter game, and WSOP is the No. 1 poker title.

Among the company’s top revenue titles in the quarter:

• Bingo Blitz generated $153.7 million in revenue, down 3% sequentially and 5.4% year-over-year.
• Disney Solitaire generated $123.3 million, up 72.1% sequentially.
• June’s Journey generated $76.0 million, up 8.7% sequentially and 10.4% year-over-year.

Lee said Bingo Blitz remains the leading bingo title worldwide across iOS and Google Play, and that its DTC growth continues to support the economics of the franchise. He described June’s Journey’s quarter as the studio’s best since the second quarter of 2024 and said the company sees potential for it to become “a million-dollar a day game over time.”

Slotomania Stabilizes, But Management Avoids Growth Promise

Playtika also pointed to improved performance at Slotomania, its legacy social casino title. Antokol said the game grew 4% quarter-over-quarter, meeting the company’s prior expectation for sequential improvement.

“This is a mature, competitive category, we are not making a forward promise of continued growth from here,” Antokol said in prepared remarks. “Flattening the decline and showing early stability is an important milestone.”

Asked by Macquarie analyst Aaron Lee about competitive pressure from sweepstakes casinos and state-level legislation, Antokol declined to comment on competitors or legal issues in the category. He said his focus is on stabilizing Playtika’s social casino business and preserving its cash-flow contribution.

“What is related to me that I know I’m still leading the category, and I’m growing there, and I’m stabilizing the business,” Antokol said.

Guidance Raised as Management Prioritizes Flexibility

Playtika raised its full-year revenue outlook to a range of $2.75 billion to $2.85 billion, up from its prior range of $2.7 billion to $2.8 billion. The company also lifted its adjusted EBITDA outlook to $750 million to $790 million, compared with its previous range of $730 million to $770 million.

Lee said SuperPlay is performing ahead of plan and the core portfolio is also doing better than expected. However, he said the company is not managing solely to maximize near-term adjusted EBITDA, and wants to preserve the ability to reinvest in user acquisition or research and development if attractive opportunities appear in the second half of the year.

Playtika ended the quarter with approximately $779.2 million in cash equivalents and short-term investments. Lee said the company has since paid $461 million to former SuperPlay shareholders as an earnout payment. He also said Playtika has suspended its quarterly dividend to prioritize balance sheet flexibility and liquidity.

Lee said management is actively evaluating options to strengthen the company’s capital structure and extend its maturity runway, calling liquidity and the maturity profile “a top priority.”

On artificial intelligence, Lee said Playtika views AI as a tailwind for scaled operators. He said content creation has not historically been the primary barrier in mobile gaming; rather, the challenge is operating live games at scale with retention, monetization systems and engaged communities.

“AI will let strong operators do more with the same or fewer resources, and we intend to be one of them,” Lee said.

About Playtika NASDAQ: PLTK

Playtika Ltd. NASDAQ: PLTK is a leading developer and publisher of free-to-play mobile and social games. Established in 2010 and headquartered in Herzliya, Israel, the company has built a reputation for creating engaging, social casino and casual gaming experiences. Playtika's platform leverages data-driven analytics and in-game community features to drive player retention and monetization across multiple titles.

The company's diverse portfolio includes flagship social casino games such as Slotomania, Bingo Blitz and Caesars Casino, as well as skill-based and casual offerings like World Series of Poker and House of Fun.

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