New York Times (NYSE:NYT) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.02 EPS

New York Times (NYSE:NYT) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.02, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $762.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $752.01 million. New York Times had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 22.02%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.58 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from New York Times’ conference call:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 revenue grew 11%, adjusted operating profit increased 16% to approximately $155 million, and adjusted diluted EPS rose 19% to $0.69.
• Positive Sentiment: The company added 280,000 net new digital subscribers, reaching approximately 13.4 million; digital-only subscription revenue increased 16.4% to $408 million, supported by subscriber growth and favorable pricing-step-up performance.
• Positive Sentiment: Advertising exceeded expectations, with digital advertising revenue up 20.7% and total advertising revenue up approximately 11.3%; growth was broad-based across the portfolio, though video currently contributes only modestly to advertising growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: The Times is substantially increasing video production and investment, including reporter-led video, visual investigations, and long-form shows, viewing video as a long-term audience and monetization opportunity.
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted operating costs rose 10%, above guidance, while management warned that major technology platforms are driving less traffic to publishers. Q3 digital subscription growth is expected to moderate to 12%–15%, and first-half free cash flow benefited from seasonal working-capital timing and a largely nonrecurring $60 million tax benefit.

New York Times Price Performance

New York Times stock traded down $10.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.57. 8,649,218 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,602,316. New York Times has a fifty-two week low of $54.10 and a fifty-two week high of $87.10. The company has a market capitalization of $10.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $73.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.27.

New York Times Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th were paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. New York Times’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David S. Perpich sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $693,540.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 28,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,193,821.14. This represents a 24.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jacqueline M. Welch sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.14, for a total value of $296,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,944.22. The trade was a 14.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,121 shares of company stock valued at $1,310,920. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of New York Times

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NYT. Laird Norton Wetherby Trust Company LLC acquired a new stake in shares of New York Times during the fourth quarter worth about $282,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in New York Times by 4,127.7% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 3,880 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in New York Times in the 4th quarter worth approximately $271,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in New York Times in the 4th quarter worth approximately $265,000. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its position in New York Times by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,445 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 767 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of New York Times from $87.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of New York Times in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded New York Times from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group set a $80.00 price objective on New York Times in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of New York Times in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, New York Times currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.22.

More New York Times News

Here are the key news stories impacting New York Times this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NYT reported second-quarter earnings of $0.69 per share, above the $0.67 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $762.5 million, exceeding expectations of $752.0 million and rising 11.2% year over year. EPS also increased from $0.58 a year earlier. New York Times Co. Tops Q2 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed investors purchasing 18,448 NYT call options, roughly 1,071% above typical volume. This may indicate speculative positioning for a rebound, although options activity does not guarantee sustained buying in the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: The company continues to publish a broad mix of national, international, technology, climate, politics, sports and lifestyle journalism. The coverage supports NYT’s audience reach and brand engagement, but the articles provided do not signal a direct change to revenue or earnings expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: NYT added approximately 280,000 net digital-only subscribers in the quarter, below analysts’ estimate of 295,300. Subscriber additions also slowed sequentially, and management’s outlook for digital subscription revenue was weaker than anticipated. Because digital subscriptions are central to the company’s long-term growth strategy, the forward-looking miss outweighed the quarterly earnings beat. NYT Stock Drops as Digital Subscriber Growth Slows

About New York Times

The New York Times Company is a publicly traded media organization best known for publishing The New York Times newspaper and operating the NYTimes.com digital platform. The company produces daily print and digital journalism covering national and international news, opinion pieces, feature stories, and multimedia content. Alongside its flagship newspaper, the firm offers a range of subscription-based services, including Times Cooking, NYT Games, podcasts and newsletters, designed to engage a broad audience of readers and advertisers.

Founded in 1851 by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones, The New York Times has built a reputation for in-depth reporting and investigative journalism.