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The New York Times Q1 Earnings Beat on Digital Ads, Subscriber Growth
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Key Takeaways
NYT posted Q1 2026 adjusted EPS of 61 cents, beating the 49-cent consensus estimate.
Digital ad revenues jumped 31.6% to $93.3M, topping management's guidance range.
NYT added 310,000 net digital-only subs; digital-only ARPU rose 2.4% to $9.77.
The New York Times Company’s (NYT - Free Report) first-quarter 2026 results surpassed expectations, driven by strong growth in digital subscriptions and a sharp increase in digital advertising revenues. Adjusted earnings were 61 cents per share, up 48.8% year over year and above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 49 cents by 24.5%. Quarterly revenues rose 12% from the year-ago period to $712.2 million and topped the consensus mark of $694.5 million by about 2.6%.
The quarter reflected continued momentum in the company’s subscription-led strategy, improving monetization, strong advertiser demand and expanding engagement across its diversified digital ecosystem. NYT added approximately 310,000 net digital-only subscribers in the quarter compared with the end of the fourth quarter of 2025.
The New York Times Company’s digital-only average revenue per user (ARPU) increased 2.4% year over year to $9.77. The improvement was primarily driven by subscribers transitioning from promotional pricing to higher-priced plans and pricing increases on certain tenured subscribers.
NYT’s Subscription Revenues Continue to Climb
Total subscription revenues increased 11.3% year over year to $516.9 million in the quarter under review. Subscription revenues from digital-only products rose 16.1% to $389 million, benefiting from higher digital-only subscribers and improved ARPU. However, print subscription revenues declined 1.1% to $127.8 million due to softness in home-delivery and single-copy revenues.
The company ended the quarter with 13.08 million total subscribers across its print and digital products, including 12.52 million digital-only subscribers. Digital-only subscribers increased by approximately 1.46 million year over year.
Management remains optimistic about subscription growth trends. For the second quarter of 2026, NYT expects digital-only subscription revenues to increase 14-17%, while total subscription revenues are projected to rise 10-12%.
The New York Times Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Digital Advertising Strength Boosts NYT’s Top Line
Total advertising revenues rose 17.3% year over year to $126.8 million in the quarter. Digital advertising revenues surged 31.6% to $93.3 million, significantly exceeding management’s guidance range, fueled by strong marketer demand and growth in advertising supply. Print advertising revenues declined 9.8% to $33.6 million.
The New York Times Company highlighted continued strength in advertising categories tied to sports, games, shopping and lifestyle content. The company continues to incrementally expand advertising supply across its portfolio while maintaining a consumer-first experience.
For the second quarter, NYT expects digital advertising revenues to grow in the high-teens range, while total advertising revenues are projected to increase at a high-single-digit rate.
Other Key Highlights of NYT’s Results
Affiliate, licensing and other revenues increased 7.8% year over year to $68.5 million, mainly driven by stronger licensing revenues.
On the expense front, adjusted operating costs increased 9.4% year over year to $594.3 million, primarily due to higher compensation and benefits expenses related to journalism investments, video initiatives, marketing and product development.
Despite elevated investments, NYT delivered strong operating leverage. Adjusted operating profit increased 27.2% year over year to $117.9 million, while adjusted operating profit margin expanded 200 basis points to 16.6%.
NYT foresees affiliate, licensing and other revenues to rise at a low single-digit rate in the second quarter. Adjusted operating costs are expected to increase 8-9%, as the company continues investing in its journalism and digital product experiences while aiming to operate efficiently.
Sneak Peek Into NYT’s Financial Health
The New York Times Company ended the quarter with cash and marketable securities of $1.1 billion, a decline of $60.7 million from $1.2 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025. The company had no borrowings outstanding under its $400 million revolving credit facility and carried no other debt.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $92.2 million in the first quarter, and free cash flow was $81.5 million. Capital expenditures totaled about $11 million. NYT also repurchased 779,365 shares for $56.3 million during the quarter, with approximately $291.2 million remaining under its share repurchase authorization as of May 1, 2026. Management continues to expect capital expenditures between $35 million and $45 million for 2026.
Bottom Line
The New York Times Company delivered another impressive quarter, outperforming expectations on both earnings and revenues while demonstrating the resilience of its subscription-first business model. Strong digital subscription growth, accelerating digital advertising revenues and expanding engagement across video and lifestyle products continue to strengthen the company’s long-term growth profile.
With disciplined cost management, healthy free cash flow generation and a debt-free balance sheet, NYT appears well-positioned to sustain growth momentum while investing strategically in journalism, product innovation and audience expansion.
We note that shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have advanced 33.7% over the past six months compared with the industry’s rise of 14.1%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Docebo’s current financial-year sales and EPS implies growth of 11.7% and 22.5%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s actuals.
Atlassian Corporation (TEAM - Free Report) , a leading provider of team collaboration and productivity software, sports a Zacks Rank #1. TEAM has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 21.5%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Atlassian Corporation’s current financial-year revenues and EPS calls for growth of 23.3% and 48.9%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s reported numbers.
Arista Networks, Inc. (ANET - Free Report) , an industry leader in data-driven, client-to-cloud networking for large AI, data center, campus and routing environments, carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). ANET has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 8.3%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Arista Networks’ current financial-year sales and EPS suggests growth of 26.3% and 18.8%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s actuals.
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The New York Times Q1 Earnings Beat on Digital Ads, Subscriber Growth
Key Takeaways
The New York Times Company’s (NYT - Free Report) first-quarter 2026 results surpassed expectations, driven by strong growth in digital subscriptions and a sharp increase in digital advertising revenues. Adjusted earnings were 61 cents per share, up 48.8% year over year and above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 49 cents by 24.5%. Quarterly revenues rose 12% from the year-ago period to $712.2 million and topped the consensus mark of $694.5 million by about 2.6%.
The quarter reflected continued momentum in the company’s subscription-led strategy, improving monetization, strong advertiser demand and expanding engagement across its diversified digital ecosystem. NYT added approximately 310,000 net digital-only subscribers in the quarter compared with the end of the fourth quarter of 2025.
The New York Times Company’s digital-only average revenue per user (ARPU) increased 2.4% year over year to $9.77. The improvement was primarily driven by subscribers transitioning from promotional pricing to higher-priced plans and pricing increases on certain tenured subscribers.
NYT’s Subscription Revenues Continue to Climb
Total subscription revenues increased 11.3% year over year to $516.9 million in the quarter under review. Subscription revenues from digital-only products rose 16.1% to $389 million, benefiting from higher digital-only subscribers and improved ARPU. However, print subscription revenues declined 1.1% to $127.8 million due to softness in home-delivery and single-copy revenues.
The company ended the quarter with 13.08 million total subscribers across its print and digital products, including 12.52 million digital-only subscribers. Digital-only subscribers increased by approximately 1.46 million year over year.
Management remains optimistic about subscription growth trends. For the second quarter of 2026, NYT expects digital-only subscription revenues to increase 14-17%, while total subscription revenues are projected to rise 10-12%.
The New York Times Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
The New York Times Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | The New York Times Company Quote
Digital Advertising Strength Boosts NYT’s Top Line
Total advertising revenues rose 17.3% year over year to $126.8 million in the quarter. Digital advertising revenues surged 31.6% to $93.3 million, significantly exceeding management’s guidance range, fueled by strong marketer demand and growth in advertising supply. Print advertising revenues declined 9.8% to $33.6 million.
The New York Times Company highlighted continued strength in advertising categories tied to sports, games, shopping and lifestyle content. The company continues to incrementally expand advertising supply across its portfolio while maintaining a consumer-first experience.
For the second quarter, NYT expects digital advertising revenues to grow in the high-teens range, while total advertising revenues are projected to increase at a high-single-digit rate.
Other Key Highlights of NYT’s Results
Affiliate, licensing and other revenues increased 7.8% year over year to $68.5 million, mainly driven by stronger licensing revenues.
On the expense front, adjusted operating costs increased 9.4% year over year to $594.3 million, primarily due to higher compensation and benefits expenses related to journalism investments, video initiatives, marketing and product development.
Despite elevated investments, NYT delivered strong operating leverage. Adjusted operating profit increased 27.2% year over year to $117.9 million, while adjusted operating profit margin expanded 200 basis points to 16.6%.
NYT foresees affiliate, licensing and other revenues to rise at a low single-digit rate in the second quarter. Adjusted operating costs are expected to increase 8-9%, as the company continues investing in its journalism and digital product experiences while aiming to operate efficiently.
Sneak Peek Into NYT’s Financial Health
The New York Times Company ended the quarter with cash and marketable securities of $1.1 billion, a decline of $60.7 million from $1.2 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025. The company had no borrowings outstanding under its $400 million revolving credit facility and carried no other debt.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $92.2 million in the first quarter, and free cash flow was $81.5 million. Capital expenditures totaled about $11 million. NYT also repurchased 779,365 shares for $56.3 million during the quarter, with approximately $291.2 million remaining under its share repurchase authorization as of May 1, 2026. Management continues to expect capital expenditures between $35 million and $45 million for 2026.
Bottom Line
The New York Times Company delivered another impressive quarter, outperforming expectations on both earnings and revenues while demonstrating the resilience of its subscription-first business model. Strong digital subscription growth, accelerating digital advertising revenues and expanding engagement across video and lifestyle products continue to strengthen the company’s long-term growth profile.
With disciplined cost management, healthy free cash flow generation and a debt-free balance sheet, NYT appears well-positioned to sustain growth momentum while investing strategically in journalism, product innovation and audience expansion.
We note that shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have advanced 33.7% over the past six months compared with the industry’s rise of 14.1%.
Stocks Worth Watching
Docebo Inc. (DCBO - Free Report) , the enterprise platform for the AI-era workforce, currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). DCBO has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 28.2%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Docebo’s current financial-year sales and EPS implies growth of 11.7% and 22.5%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s actuals.
Atlassian Corporation (TEAM - Free Report) , a leading provider of team collaboration and productivity software, sports a Zacks Rank #1. TEAM has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 21.5%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Atlassian Corporation’s current financial-year revenues and EPS calls for growth of 23.3% and 48.9%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s reported numbers.
Arista Networks, Inc. (ANET - Free Report) , an industry leader in data-driven, client-to-cloud networking for large AI, data center, campus and routing environments, carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). ANET has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 8.3%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Arista Networks’ current financial-year sales and EPS suggests growth of 26.3% and 18.8%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s actuals.