However, the supplier’s net loss grew 45% during the period, to $352.4m. This is explained by costs including that of restructuring and the $151.5m settlement it agreed in December, over a legal dispute with Shuffle Tech.
Subsidiary SG Digital more than trebled its adjusted EBITDA from $16m in 2017 to $54.1m in 2018, with revenue increasing almost four-fold, from $65.8m to $269.6m.
Revenue wise, although Scientific Games’ total for the financial year is significantly larger, its rate of growth is on par with fellow suppliers NetEnt (9%, to $192m) and Konami’s Gaming & Systems division (8%, to $1.77bn).
Playtech, which also announced its results on Thursday, reported a 54% growth to $1.4bn – although this was heavily influenced by its purchase of Snaitech.
Scientific Games’ consolidated adjusted EBITDA rose 9% to $1.32bn in 2018, while net cash provided by operating activities fell from $507.1m to $346.1m, primarily reflective of the Shuffle Tech settlement.
In Q4, revenue grew 8% year-on-year to $885.7m, while net income was $206.8m, compared to a net loss of $43.1m in Q4 2017.
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA increased 6% to $343.5m; net cash provided by operating activities, though, fell from $118.1m to -$9.8m, another measure heavily impacted by the Shuffle Tech settlement.
Barry Cottle, Scientific Games CEO and President, said: “This is a very exciting time. We are building momentum and continuing to grow our business while at the same time operating more efficiently.”
