TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.13 EPS

TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.13, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. TKO Group had a return on equity of 3.31% and a net margin of 5.19%. TKO Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.47 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from TKO Group’s conference call:

• TKO reported third-quarter revenue of $1.36 billion, up 21%, and adjusted EBITDA of $556 million, up 54%. Management raised full-year 2026 guidance for the second consecutive quarter, to revenue of $5.79 billion–$5.83 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $2.295 billion–$2.315 billion.
• UFC delivered strong event and commercial results: live-events revenue rose 83%, and UFC 329 set a company record with a $26 million gate. WWE partnerships revenue grew 28% despite a lighter PLE calendar, while Raw continued to reach Netflix’s global top 10.
• On Location’s 2026 FIFA World Cup hospitality program generated $2.4 billion in sales and about $90 million of full-year adjusted EBITDA, exceeding the company’s estimate. Management said it is tracking ahead of plan for LA28, while emphasizing it will pursue future Olympic deals only if returns meet its investment thresholds.
• The outlook depends on scheduled Middle East events proceeding as planned; management said cancellations or relocations would affect current guidance. Looking ahead, management also noted that 2027 will lack the World Cup and other quadrennial-event contributions, while spending ramps for LA28.
• TKO intends to use cash on hand and new debt to aggressively repurchase shares under its remaining authorization. The company ended the quarter with net leverage of 2.0 times and said it returned more than $1.6 billion to shareholders year to date through dividends and buybacks.

TKO Group Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:TKO traded up $1.04 on Friday, hitting $190.18. 804,108 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,223,389. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. TKO Group has a 1 year low of $170.14 and a 1 year high of $226.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $182.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $193.17. The company has a market cap of $36.00 billion, a PE ratio of 51.08 and a beta of 0.66.

TKO Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. TKO Group’s payout ratio is 85.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ariel Emanuel sold 24,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.39, for a total transaction of $4,801,821.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 174,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,888,786.26. The trade was a 12.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Nick Khan sold 9,589 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.17, for a total transaction of $1,890,663.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,757,456.48. This represents a 19.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 97,325 shares of company stock worth $18,798,012 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 64.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of TKO Group from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of TKO Group from $275.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of TKO Group in a research report on Friday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of TKO Group from $225.00 to $222.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of TKO Group in a research report on Monday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.29.

About TKO Group

TKO Group Holdings, Inc is a sports and entertainment company that owns and operates UFC and WWE, two global combat-sports and sports-entertainment brands. UFC promotes mixed martial arts events, while WWE produces live and televised professional wrestling programming featuring its roster of performers, storylines and branded events.

In addition to its core properties, TKO provides related media, licensing, sponsorship, live-event and consumer-products opportunities. The company’s businesses serve audiences internationally through live events, broadcast and streaming distribution, digital content, merchandise and other commercial partnerships.

TKO was formed in 2023 through the combination of UFC and WWE under Endeavor Group Holdings.