Ongoing resilience of the US gaming sector, even amid economic uncertainty, presents a good opportunity for investors looking at ASX-listed gaming stocks.
Consistent growth in gaming revenues across the sector is good news for Aristocrat Leisure Ltd (ASX: ALL) and Light & Wonder Inc (ASX: LNW) shares.
The two stocks have fluctuated over the past year following unimpressive half-year results. Global volatility, driven by US trade tariffs and rising geopolitical tension also rattled investor sentiment over the period.
Aristocrat shares are trading at $65.48 as of lunchtime today, up 0.48%. The stock is up 30.86% over the year.
The Australian gambling machine manufacturer's stock experienced a shaky few months in early 2025. Between late-February and early-April, the share price slumped 26.21% to a low of $57.93.
Meanwhile, Light & Wonder shares are currently trading for $146.41, down 0.69% as of lunchtime today. The share price is also down 6.15% on the year.
The share price of the cross-platform global games company also fluctuated significantly in early 2025. It surged 29.58% to $180.16 in early-March but then shed the gains quickly. By mid-April the share price had dropped 32.21% to a low of $122.13.
But despite some volatility in both Aristocrat and Light & Wonder stocks, analysts at Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) maintain a positive position and expect a robust upside throughout FY26.
Here's what the broker had to say.
More growth expected ahead
In a recent note to investors, Macquarie confirmed it maintains its outperform rating on both Aristocrat and Light & Wonder shares.
The broker also maintains its $70 price target on Aristocrat shares. This represents a 6.9% uptick from the current trading price today.
For Light & Wonder, the broker has upgraded its price target to $188, from $187 last month. This represents a 28.4% increase on today's trading price.
The note explains that, overall in May, gaming revenues were up 4% year-on-year to US$4.6 billion. This suggests year-to-date growth is 2% higher and represents a 1% increase from April.
Regional gaming volumes, which represents 85% of the total, were up 6% year-over-year. Las Vegas gaming revenues, which represents the remaining 15%, were down 4% year-over-year.
Macquarie said:
US casino gaming revenues remain resilient, despite macroeconomic uncertainty following the 'Liberation Day' tariffs announced in early-April 2025.
We expect US casino gaming revenues will continue to be insulated from potential economic downturn given the historically low correlation to US GDP.
Overall, this backdrop is supportive for North America outright volumes (indirectly via operator budgets) and Gaming Ops (directly via US casino gaming revenue trends); we are constructive on Aristocrat and Light & Wonder.
