Playtika Sets Sights on $450M in M&A, Skipping AppLovin Bid
Source: PocketGamer
Mobile gaming giant Playtika is gearing up for a major acquisition spree, earmarking $300 million to $450 million for “bolt-on” M&A over the next three years. That’s straight from President and CFO Craig Abrahams during the company’s latest Q4 and 2024 investor call.
The move follows Playtika’s $1.95 billion takeover of Dice Dreams and Domino Dreams developer SuperPlay last November. While speculation had swirled about Playtika making a play for AppLovin’s $900M games portfolio, this budget suggests that’s off the table.
D2C Growth, But a Mixed Picture
Playtika’s direct-to-consumer (D2C) revenue climbed 8.6% Y/Y to $694M in 2024, continuing its push toward first-party distribution. In Q4, D2C revenue hit $174.6M—up 8% Y/Y, but barely nudging quarter-over-quarter growth at 0.1%.
However, D2C’s share of total revenue slipped to 26.8% in Q4 (down from 28.1% in Q3), which Playtika attributed to the SuperPlay acquisition—since Dice Dreams and Domino Dreams don’t use these sales channels.
Financials: A Tough Year
2024 revenue landed at $2.5B, dipping 0.7% Y/Y. Meanwhile, net income plummeted 31% to $162.2M, with credit-adjusted EBITDA sliding 9% to $832.2M.
Q4 had a slight revenue bump—$650.3M, up 1.9% Y/Y—but profits took a hit. Net income swung to a $16.7M loss, down a staggering 144.8% Y/Y. Credit-adjusted EBITDA also slipped 2.6% Y/Y to $183.9M.
With acquisitions on the horizon and a shifting D2C strategy, Playtika is playing the long game. But can it turn the tide on profitability?
During the last quarter, Playtika said it had 339K average daily paying users across its portfolio, a rise of 10.8% Y/Y. Casual games sales increased 11.3% Y/Y, while social casino revenue declined 10%.
Bingo Blitz revenue increased 5.8% Y/Y to $159.1m in Q4, while Slotomania sales dropped 13.5% Y/Y to $118.4m, and Solitaire Grand Harvest declined by 4.3% to $72.5m.
It should be noted that as of Q4, Playtika’s financials now include sales from the newly acquired SuperPlay.
“Continued M&A opportunities”
“We are thrilled with the progress we have made in executing our return to growth strategy, highlighted by our successful acquisition of SuperPlay,” said Playtika CEO Robert Antokol.
“Looking ahead, we are excited by our pipeline of new games and continued M&A opportunities, which we believe will drive consistent topline growth and create value for our shareholders.”
Playtika president and CFO Craig Abrahams added: “As we continue to evolve our portfolio mix, we anticipate this year to be transitional as we invest in newly acquired studios in their early stages. We believe these investments will position us for renewed EBITDA growth starting in 2026 and beyond.”
