The latest update from the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM) for the AGEM Index shows a surprising downturn. The basket of stocks for certain gaming companies saw gains each month from May to September that ranged from just above 3% to as much as 14.5%, but the October results couldn’t keep that momentum going. According to the latest figures, the AGEM Index slipped 6.8% last month from September’s numbers, even as the gaming industry appears to be on a post-COVID-19 rebound.
The Index lost a total of 36.05 points last month, closing at 494.82. While the drop is significant in terms of recovery, it was only 2.5% lower than what was reported in October 2019. This would seem to indicate that gaming operators are still on the right track as they try to get back on course and recuperate recent losses.
The biggest drop was seen in PlayAGS Inc, which lost 23.7% from September and 76.6% from October of last year. However, in terms of month-to-month performance, International Game Technology took the worst of it, with its stock showing a 26.2% loss compared to September. Year on year, its loss was 38%. Aristocrat Leisure Ltd. also took a hit with a 4.5% dip and forcing the Index to lose 15.96 points. Konami Corp. cost the Index 9.8 points as it saw a month-over-month decline of 10.4%. Transact Technologies added 43% from September, but is still down 42.2% year on year.
Overall, of the 13 companies covered, eight moved down and five moved up from September. Of those that saw improvement, only one was able to report improvements in both prior-month and prior-year performances. Agilsys, which jumped 12.1% over September’s figure and 7.5% over that of October of last year. The others saw either month-over-month improvements or year-on-year improvements, or vice versa. Scientific Games Corp. falls into that category, seeing an 8.7% month-over-month slip, but a year-on-year gain of 32.9%.
The AGEM Index wasn’t the only bag of stocks to get punched in the gut last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average went down by 3.5% and the NASDAQ lost 2.7%. In addition, the S&P 500 erased 1.9% of its September close. August had seen the three report respective gains of 7.8%, 7.4% and 10.8%, which were then offset by September’s drops of 2.3%, 3.9% and 4.9% and, now, October’s declines.
