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International Game Technology files definitive proxy materials23 January 2013LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- International Game Technology (IGT) ("IGT" or "the Company"), a global leader in casino gaming entertainment and systems technology, today announced that it has filed its definitive proxy statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and has commenced mailing proxy materials to IGT shareholders. IGT also today announced the date and location of its Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which will be held on Tuesday, March 5, 2013 at 7:30 am PT at Canyon Gate Country Club, Las Vegas, NV. In the letter mailed to shareholders, the Board describes IGT's successful implementation of its strategic plan, which is designed to address the economic and industry trends that have fundamentally changed the gaming industry. The Board and management team believe that this comprehensive strategy has taken hold, as evidenced by the Company's outstanding 2013 fiscal first quarter results announced yesterday. The letter also reiterates the Board's unanimous recommendation that IGT shareholders vote for the eight highly-qualified incumbent directors standing for reelection at Company's 2013 Annual Meeting of Shareholders on the WHITE proxy card. The full text of the IGT Board's letter is below: Dear Fellow Shareholders: You have an opportunity to help determine the future of your investment in IGT. We are writing to you to make sure you have all the facts before you vote in connection with the 2013 Annual Meeting of Shareholders on March 5, 2013. The significant progress IGT has made is at stake – your vote is essential to keeping your company on the right track. Your Board is comprised of eight highly qualified and experienced directors – Paget L. Alves, Janice Chaffin, Greg Creed, Patti S. Hart, Robert J. Miller, David E. Roberson, Vincent L. Sadusky and Philip G. Satre. The IGT Board recommends that you vote FOR all of IGT's directors by telephone, Internet or by signing, dating and returning the enclosed WHITE proxy TODAY. The Board and management team remain confident that the interests of shareholders will be best served by IGT's continued focus on its growth strategy, which is positioning IGT for long-term success and significant shareholder value creation. The Company has been delivering strong and improving financial results, and has returned a total of $546 million to IGT shareholders over the past 12 months. The Board believes that the Company's robust fiscal 2013 first quarter is another powerful indication that the IGT strategy is paying off. IGT's New Leadership Anticipated Fundamental Changes in the Marketplace and Took Action Our industry has changed dramatically in the past five years, and IGT's Board and senior leadership team have anticipated and taken proactive steps to benefit from nascent trends. In 2009, IGT's Board recognized that the gaming industry was in the midst of a significant change, and that transformative leadership and action were necessary for IGT to not only maintain its industry leadership, but to position itself to rebuild shareholder value and return capital to its shareholders. Your Board instituted new corporate governance policies, engaged qualified and experienced leadership and developed a growth strategy that has allowed IGT to adapt to new technologies and changing industry dynamics. Today, your eight-member Board includes seven independent directors and has been further enhanced by the separation of the Chairman and CEO roles, and the appointment of an independent Chairman of the Board. This month, Casino Journal published an evaluation by HVS Executive Search of corporate governance practices at public gaming companies. That evaluation, recognizing the effectiveness of the Board's best practices, ranked IGT's Board of Directors second out of 32 gaming companies for Board performance in 2012.[1] This Board and senior leadership team have anticipated and faced head-on the economic and industry trends that have fundamentally changed the gaming industry, including: Broad decline in domestic gross gaming revenue; Sharp downturn in new casino openings; Conservative spending from casino patrons and, in turn, casino operators, which led to a decrease in replacement demand, particularly on "the Strip"; Increase in competition within the marketplace, born from the boom years of 1993 through 2008; and Emergence of online and social gaming. Your Board and Management Team Are Implementing a Comprehensive Strategy to Enhance IGT's Competitive Position in This Rapidly Changing Market Given the changing marketplace conditions, IGT's new Board and management team recognized that IGT could not rely primarily on industry growth, including new casino openings, for its future success. The Board and management team developed a comprehensive new strategy and began the process of implementing it across the organization. Among other things, since 2009, IGT has: Implemented an enhanced content strategy, leveraging our best-in-class content across the most dynamic portfolio of gaming platforms in the industry - offering games to anyone, anywhere, anytime; Leveraged its culture of innovation, introducing sbX, Cloud, Advantage Systems enhancements, joy stick play and SoundSync, among others; Expanded internationally, increasing its presence in Macau, Italy, South Africa, Latin America and the UK; Identified adjacent growth business opportunity in social casino gaming, leveraging IGT's core business content and setting the stage for future growth; Conducted a thorough examination of its internal infrastructure, workforce and cost structure, streamlining operations to enhance efficiency and decision making and to reduce expenses; and Refinanced over $2.2 billion in short-term indebtedness improving IGT's liquidity and financial stability, and preserving its investment grade rating Initiated a global restructuring of its sales organization to enable it to effectively serve customers in a changed economic environment. These strategic changes, along with many others, transformed IGT into a leaner, more competitive organization. As a result, IGT is delivering industry-leading, content-driven products to its customers, establishing new revenue channels, delivering strong financial performance and returning capital to shareholders. The Board believes that the continued implementation of its strategy is in the best interests of our shareholders. IGT's Excellent Fiscal 2013 First Quarter Results Highlight That Its Comprehensive Strategy Is Taking Hold On January 22, 2013, IGT reported terrific fiscal 2013 first quarter financial results, building upon the momentum established in fiscal 2012. This sustained strength in financial performance and effective and efficient day to day management of the business demonstrates the ongoing success of IGT's strategy. Overall, we are pleased that: Core products continue to perform, shipping more units in this quarter than in any first quarter in four years; Gaming operations franchise is generating healthy profits, despite a challenging environment; and Social gaming on IGT's DoubleDown platform is adding to top line growth by leveraging IGT content like DaVinci Diamonds, Cleopatra and Wolf Run. Financial highlights from IGT's fiscal 2013 first quarter as compared to the fiscal 2012 first quarter include: Total revenues increased 19% to $530 million; North America product sales revenue increased 54%; Gaming Operations gross margins rose 63%; Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations[2] increased 65% to $0.28; Sold 5,100 North America replacement units, up 82%; and Social Gaming revenues increased 15% sequentially from the fiscal fourth quarter of 2012. IGT's adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations for the fiscal first quarter is $0.28, an increase of 65% over the prior year period. Including its $400 million accelerated stock buyback, the Company has repurchased over 35 million shares, or about 11% of total shares outstanding, over the preceding 12 months. Including share repurchases and dividends, IGT has returned a total of $546 million to shareholders over the past year. Our strong financial results continue to: Reinforce the strength of our leadership position in our core business; Affirm our strategy of leveraging our best-in-class content across the most dynamic portfolio of gaming platforms in the industry; and Reflect the financial strength of the company. The Company's fiscal 2013 first quarter financial results are strong, and we remain on track to deliver our FOURTH consecutive year of double digit growth in adjusted EPS from continuing operations. The Board believes the trend in improving earnings underscores that IGT's strategy has taken hold and is delivering results. IGT Identified the Opportunity, Became a "First Mover" and is Benefiting from Online Gaming In addition to implementing a successful and sophisticated strategy that is delivering strong and improving financial performance, IGT has been ahead of the industry in defining new, innovative opportunities for growth. IGT identified Double Down Interactive LLC as the right entry point to leverage our best-in-class gaming content and provide IGT with instant size and scale in the rapidly growing arena of casino-style social gaming. Double Down also helped to broaden IGT's popular gaming titles beyond the physical casino to Facebook, the world's largest social network with over 800 million global users. IGT's investment in Double Down's casino-style social gaming is delivering meaningful financial contributions and significant revenue growth: Generated total revenues of $128 million since acquisition, a compound quarterly growth rate of over 24% between the 2012 fiscal second quarter and the 2013 fiscal first quarter; Generated total revenues of $41.3 million in the 2013 fiscal first quarter, an increase of $5.5 million sequentially over the prior quarter; Increased bookings per daily active users, a measure of revenue, by almost 30%, from $0.24 in the 2012 fiscal second quarter to $0.31 in the 2013 fiscal first quarter; Grew revenues over 15% sequentially from the 2012 fiscal fourth quarter to the 2013 fiscal first quarter; Double Down is the #3 top-grossing app on Facebook and the #6 top-grossing iPad app; and IGT's strategy has also been validated by the entrance of other supplier and operator companies seeking to gain a foothold in online casino style gaming, including Bally, Aristocrat, Konami, WMS, Zynga, Caesars, and MGM. We remain focused on significantly growing Double Down by leveraging our content and systems to benefit from changing industry dynamics, new gaming trends and an expanded competitive set. We are confident that our investment will be GAAP accretive in 2014. The Board Urges Shareholders NOT to Sacrifice a More Valuable Tomorrow for Yesterday's Outmoded Business Model IGT's Board recommends that you reject the Ader Investment Management LP nominees by declining to vote for them online, by telephone or by mail, and by discarding any gold proxy card you receive. As you may know, Ader Investment Management – in collaboration with former IGT Chairman and CEO Charles N. Mathewson – is seeking to replace three IGT directors with three candidates it has nominated to stand for election to the IGT Board of Directors. We believe that Ader Investment Management is advocating an outmoded business model that would return the Company's strategic focus to where it was ten years ago. The Board believes this is not the best approach in the current marketplace. IGT's Board Is Acting in the Best Interests of Shareholders; Protect Your Investment by Maintaining IGT's Strong Strategic Direction Every member of the IGT Board has the experience and expertise necessary to navigate IGT through the evolving gaming industry, position the Company for significant future growth and propel it into the future by continuing to lead the industry. The Board has implemented an innovative, forward-looking strategy designed to not only enhance and elevate the core gaming business but also address the realities of today's marketplace. Importantly, IGT is committed to maintaining an appropriate balance in its deployment of capital among investing in its core business, pursuing new growth opportunities and returning capital to shareholders. The IGT Board is acting in the best interests of shareholders and is focused on executing its strategy, which we firmly believe will protect and grow your investment in IGT. Accordingly, the IGT Board recommends that you vote FOR all of IGT's directors on the WHITE proxy card TODAY. On behalf of the International Game Technology Board of Directors: Philip G. Satre, Chairman of the Board Patti S. Hart, Chief Executive Officer
International Game Technology files definitive proxy materials
is republished from CasinoVendors.com.
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