AGEM Index Falls 6.1% in September, Its First Monthly Drop Since March

Every one of the nine gaming suppliers in the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers' index pulled it down in September, led by Aristocrat and Light & Wonder. The index is now 5.9% lower than a year ago while the S&P 500 is up 14.4%.

• The AGEM Index fell 118.24 points, or 6.1%, to 1,811.01 in September 2026, its first month-on-month decrease since March, according to the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM)
• Eight of the nine index companies reported lower share prices and all nine made negative contributions, according to AGEM; the one riser, Ainsworth Game Technology, appears to have been pulled negative by a weaker Australian dollar
• Aristocrat Leisure was the largest drag, losing 46.60 points on a 2.3% fall, while Light & Wonder fell 16.8% and took 39.12 points off the index after the SciPlay chief's departure was announced
• Inspired Entertainment fell 41.0%, the biggest percentage move, in a month when Brazil banned online betting and casino by decree
• Year on year the index is down 5.9%, against gains of 14.4% for the S&P 500, 9.7% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and 18.5% for the Nasdaq

Nine Negative Contributions and None on the Other Side

The AGEM Index fell by 118.24 points to 1,811.01 in September, a 6.1% decrease from August, according to AGEM's monthly release, prepared by the Nevada consultancy Applied Analysis. It was the index's first monthly fall since March. Against September 2025 it was down 5.9%, or 114.20 points. In August it had risen 2.9% to 1,929.25.

Eight of the nine companies reported share price decreases, which AGEM says resulted in nine negative contributions and no positive ones. The ninth, Ainsworth Game Technology, rose 2.5% on the Australian exchange but still subtracted 0.07 points. AGEM does not explain that, but its method appears to: the index is weighted by approximate market capitalisation, with non-US companies converted to US dollars at month end, and the Australian dollar fell 3.2% against the US dollar over September, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Aristocrat Leisure was the largest negative contributor, according to AGEM: a 2.3% fall in its share price cost the index 46.60 points. Converted at the same exchange rates, the fall was about 5.4% in dollar terms, by iGaming Times' calculation. Light & Wonder, which AGEM tracks on the Australian exchange, fell 16.8% and took 39.12 points off the index. AGEM said the decline followed the announcement that the chief executive of SciPlay, its social casino business, would step down at the end of October. The shares fell 8.2% on 17 September, the day after that announcement, having already lost 6.3% in the month to that point, according to Yahoo Finance. In August Light & Wonder had been the index's biggest gainer, up 15.5%.

The Rest of the Table

Agilysys fell 16.6%, costing 16.08 points, and Konami 3.2%, costing 11.42 points. Crane NXT fell 3.7% (3.53 points), Galaxy Gaming 3.4% (0.05 points) and TransAct Technologies 2.6% (0.05 points). AGEM gave no reasons for those moves.

Inspired Entertainment had the largest percentage fall, 41.0%, though its size limited the damage to 1.31 points, and AGEM did not comment on it. Its shares fell from $4.57 on 25 September, the day Brazil's president signed the betting ban, to $3.29 on 29 September, according to Yahoo Finance. On 29 September Inspired said it expected substantially all of its Brazilian revenue to be affected for as long as the prohibition lasts, estimated fourth-quarter revenue about $3 million lower if the shutdown runs to the end of 2026, and said it would update its full-year outlook with third-quarter results. Over 12 months Inspired is down 63.3%, the steepest in the index.

US markets were mixed: the Dow fell 4.3% and the S&P 500 0.5% in September, while the Nasdaq rose 1.9%, according to AGEM.

The Index Is Mostly Three Big Stocks and a Currency

A 2.3% move in Aristocrat outweighed a 41.0% collapse at Inspired by a factor of more than 35. That is the arithmetic of a capitalisation-weighted index, and on September's contributions it means AGEM's headline mostly tracks Aristocrat, Konami and Light & Wonder. In September it also tracked the Australian dollar: with three constituents priced in Australian dollars and converted at month end, a weaker currency cut the index even where shares held up, as Ainsworth's result shows. Readers using the index as a gauge of supplier sentiment should read the company table, not the headline.

Light & Wonder Gave Back August in a Month

The one move AGEM explained was Light & Wonder's. An 8.2% one-day fall on the exit of a divisional chief suggests investors read it, as we did, as a signal about a unit whose revenue fell in each of the first two quarters of the year. It puts more weight on the group's debt and capital plans at its next results. IGT and Everi, privately held under Apollo since 2025, are not in the index at all, though IGT launched a new brand at G2E, which opened in Las Vegas on 28 September.

September's fall was broad, but most of its size came from two stocks and one exchange rate. October's figure will show whether the G2E season and Brazil's ban leave a mark on supplier shares beyond Inspired.