Releasing its financial results for the period, the company reported consolidated revenues of $1,207m, surpassing the $1,153m recorded during the same period of 2017.
IGT attributed this rise to ‘strong global casino systems sales, broad-based momentum in lottery, and Italy sports betting results which all caused increases in revenue.
Adjusted EBITDA rose by 18% year-on-year during the period, rising to $436m from a Q1 2017 high of $371m, while adjusted operating income rose by 6% year-on-year to a Q1 2018 high of $251m.
Drilling down into individual areas of operation, North America gaming & Interactive revenues fell 20% year-on-year to $244m in Q1 2018, however, this was due to the absence of revenues from DoubleDown interactive, which was sold during the second quarter of 2017.
North American lottery revenues rose by 5% year-on-year to $295m while revenues from IGT’s international business also grew 12% year-on-year to $184m during Q1 2018.
IGT reported a 4% rise in its revenues from the businesses Italian operations which grew year-on-year to $483m.
Speaking about the results, Alberto Fornaro, CFO of IGT said: "We are solidly positioned to achieve our 2018 strategic and financial goals. With revenue growing 5% and Adjusted EBITDA up 18%, our first quarter results are some of the best we've reported."
However, it wasn’t all plain sailing for the business as it continues to suffer the effects of foreign currency losses, which caused IGT to report a $103m net loss during the quarter. Of this $103m, $97m was directly due to what the company called ‘net foreign exchange loss’.
Company net debts were also hit by negative foreign currency impacts, with debts rising to $7,525m during Q1 2018 from a Q1 2017 figure of $7,398m, a rise of 2% year-on-year. Of this $7,525m loss, over $119m was directly due to foreign exchange losses.
Despite the losses, Marco Sala, CEO of IGT was keen to focus on the positives, adding: "Lottery same-store revenue growth was among the highest levels in the last several quarters, even in our largest markets. A sharp increase in systems sales, double-digit growth in global gaming machine replacement unit shipments, and sequential improvement in the North America installed base confirm the good momentum of our global Gaming business.
"The positive underlying contribution from each of our operating segments provides a strong start to the year."
