Light & Wonder (NASDAQ:LNW) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Light & Wonder, Inc. (NASDAQ:LNW) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $87.87, but opened at $90.01. Light & Wonder shares last traded at $91.31, with a volume of 121,526 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LNW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Macquarie lifted their target price on Light & Wonder from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Light & Wonder from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup upgraded shares of Light & Wonder from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Light & Wonder from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Light & Wonder from $120.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.91.

Light & Wonder Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.49, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $98.29 and its 200-day moving average is $95.22. The stock has a market cap of $7.10 billion, a PE ratio of 26.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP James Sottile sold 2,356 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.54, for a total value of $248,652.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 77,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,161,513.74. This represents a 2.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Siobhan Lane sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.37, for a total transaction of $398,720.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 21,254 shares in the company, valued at $2,239,533.98. This trade represents a 15.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,867 shares of company stock valued at $1,037,884. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Light & Wonder

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Light & Wonder by 222.1% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 13,042 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 8,993 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Light & Wonder by 108.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after acquiring an additional 6,472 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Light & Wonder by 1.5% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 19,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,775,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Light & Wonder by 1.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 206,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,768,000 after acquiring an additional 2,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Light & Wonder during the 3rd quarter valued at $261,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.