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Ziff Davis

ZD Nasdaq Advertising Financials FY2016–FY2025

Ziff Davis' revenue rose 3.5% to $1.5 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 12.6%, up from 8.1% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $288 million, up 1.5%. It paid out $174 million in dividends and buybacks, 60% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 7.7%.

Last close · Oct 23, 2026

$57.89

0.1%
Value it Compare
Revenue Total sales reported in the income statement.
$1.5B
3.5% vs prior year
Operating margin Operating income as a share of revenue.
12.6%
4.5 pts
Net income Profit after all expenses, interest and tax.
$47.4M
24.8%
Free cash flow Cash from operations minus capital spending.
$288M
1.5%
Return on capital After-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash.
6.0%
3.1 pts
Market cap Last close times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate.
$2.1B
Oct 23 close
P/E Last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters.
3.3x
On $17.68 EPS (TTM)

What Ziff Davis does

No business description yet.

Legal name
ZIFF DAVIS, INC.
Fiscal year ends
December 31, 2025
Latest annual report
—
Accession · CIK
0001084048-26-000005
0001084048

Revenue and margins

Ziff Davis had $1.5B of revenue in fiscal 2025, up 3.5% on the year before.

Revenue
Revenue
Margins, % of revenue
Gross Operating Net FCF
Margins, % of revenue
Gross Operating Net FCF

Net income and earnings per share

From fiscal 2016 to 2025, diluted EPS grew −10.5% a year. Loss periods are shown in red.

Net income
Net income
Diluted EPS
Diluted EPS

Returns on capital

After-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash.

Return on capital, equity and assets (annual)
Return on capital Return on equity Return on assets

Cash flow

Free cash flow was $288M in fiscal 2025, 19.8% of revenue. Cash from operations minus capital spending.

Free cash flow
Free cash flow
Cash from operations vs capital spending
Cash from operations Capital spending
Cash from operations vs capital spending
Cash from operations Capital spending

Dividends, buybacks and share count

Ziff Davis returned $174M to shareholders in fiscal 2025, 60% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 7.7%.

Dividends and buybacks
Dividends Buybacks
Dividends and buybacks
Dividends Buybacks
Diluted shares outstanding (annual)

Value Ziff Davis yourself

Change the assumptions and see what they imply per share. These are models, not forecasts or price targets — the answer depends entirely on what you put in.

Discounted cash flow

Value per share

—

Adds net cash of −$260M and divides by 41.1M diluted shares. Ten years of cash flows plus a terminal value, discounted to today.

Earnings multiple

Value per share

—

Reference multiples: today 3.3x · peers 29.4x · sector 17.3x.

Balance sheet

Cash, debt and the ratios that show how comfortably Ziff Davis can carry it.

Cash vs debt (incl. leases)
Cash Debt
Fiscal year endFY21FY22FY23FY24FY25
Cash and short-term investments $924M$711M$765M$506M$607M
Debt incl. finance leases $1.1B$999M$1.0B$864M$867M
Net debt / EBITDA 0.4x0.7x0.6x1.1x0.6x
Debt / equity 0.6x0.5x0.5x0.5x0.5x
Interest coverage 2.1x5.4x3.2x3.2x4.9x
Current ratio 2.6x2.5x2.8x1.4x1.3x
Quick ratio 2.6x2.5x2.8x1.4x1.3x
Total assets $3.8B$3.5B$3.5B$3.7B$3.7B
Total liabilities $1.8B$1.6B$1.6B$1.9B$1.9B
Shareholders' equity $2.0B$1.9B$1.9B$1.8B$1.8B
Net debt (− = net cash) $167M$288M$237M$358M$260M

Insider trades

Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from Form 4 filings. 'Plan' marks trades under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.

Bought, 12 months

$0.0M

0 insiders

Sold, 12 months

$2.1M

6 insiders

Of sales under plans

0%

$0.0M

DateInsiderTradeSharesPriceValueFiling
Aug 18, 2026 Kretzmer W BrianDirector Sold 2,513 $55.31 $0.1M Form 4
Aug 12, 2026 Lori A. TansleyChief Accounting Officer Sold 1,400 $54.76 $0.1M Form 4
Aug 10, 2026 Jeremy RossenEVP/General Counsel Sold 3,819 $54.93 $0.2M Form 4
Jun 10, 2026 Bret RichterChief Financial Officer Sold 18,000 $46.88 $0.8M Form 4
Jun 8, 2026 Kirk P McDonaldDirector Sold 1,075 $46.65 $0.1M Form 4
Jun 5, 2026 Jeremy RossenEVP/General Counsel Sold 8,000 $47.00 $0.4M Form 4
Jun 3, 2026 Jana BarstenDirector Sold 3,347 $45.00 $0.2M Form 4
Jun 2, 2026 Kretzmer W BrianDirector Sold 1,968 $44.51 $0.1M Form 4
May 28, 2026 Jeremy RossenEVP/General Counsel Sold 4,347 $45.75 $0.2M Form 4

Piotroski F-score

Nine pass/fail tests of profitability, funding and efficiency. 8–9 is strong, 0–2 weak.

TestFY23FY24FY25
Net income is positive ✓ ✓ ✓
Cash from operations is positive ✓ ✓ ✓
Return on assets rose ✕ ✓ ✕
Cash from operations exceeds net income ✓ ✓ ✓
Debt fell relative to assets ✕ ✓ ✓
Current ratio rose ✓ ✕ ✕
Share count didn't rise ✓ ✓ ✓
Gross margin rose ✕ ✕ ✓
Revenue rose relative to assets ✓ ✓ ✕
F-score 6 / 97 / 96 / 9
Accruals ratio −8.0%−9.1%−9.8%
Altman Z'' 4.353.103.02

Similar companies

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so periods don't line up exactly.

CompanyMarket capGrowthOp. marginFCF marginROICP/EF-score
Ziff Davis ZD $2.1B 3.5% 12.6% 19.8% 6.0% 3.3x 6
DoubleVerify DV $2.1B 13.9% 10.6% 23.1% — 38.7x — Compare →
The Trade Desk TTD $6.1B 18.5% 20.4% 27.5% — 15.7x — Compare →
AppLovin APP $87.7B 70.0% 75.8% — 98.2% 20.0x 9 Compare →
Omnicom Group OMC $22.8B 10.1% 2.6% 16.1% 2.0% 80.3x 3 Compare →

10 years of figures

US$ millions unless stated. Hover a ratio's name for its definition.

Download CSV
Fiscal yearFY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25
Income statement
Revenue $874M $1.1B $1.2B $1.1B $1.2B $1.4B $1.4B $1.4B $1.4B $1.5B
Gross profit $727M $946M $1.0B $863M $980M $1.2B $1.2B $1.2B $1.2B $1.2B
Research and development $38.0M $46.0M $48.4M $44.7M $57.1M $78.9M $74.1M $68.9M $67.4M $62.0M
Operating income $243M $246M $244M $88.2M $138M $167M $199M $133M $114M $183M
Interest expense $42.7M $59.2M $63.5M $26.1M $58.1M $79.6M $37.1M $41.6M $35.3M $37.6M
Pretax income $211M $200M $178M $54.8M $78.3M $351M $131M $75.0M $93.2M $80.7M
Income tax $59.0M $60.5M $44.8M $13.8M $38.4M −$14.2M $58.0M $24.1M $41.4M $25.4M
Net income $152M $139M $129M $219M $151M $497M $63.8M $41.5M $63.0M $47.4M
Diluted EPS $3.13 $2.83 $2.59 $4.39 $3.18 $10.37 $1.36 $0.89 $1.42 $1.15
Diluted shares 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.05B 0.04B 0.04B
Cash flow
Cash from operations $282M $264M $401M $413M $480M $517M $336M $320M $390M $407M
Capital expenditure $24.7M $39.6M $56.4M $70.6M $92.6M $114M $106M $109M $107M $119M
Free cash flow $258M $225M $345M $342M $388M $403M $230M $211M $284M $288M
Depreciation and amortization $122M $162M $187M $232M $229M $258M $233M $237M $212M $229M
Stock-based compensation $13.6M $22.7M $28.1M $23.9M $24.0M $25.2M $26.6M $31.9M $40.9M $44.9M
Acquisitions $581M $175M $312M $415M $482M $141M $104M $9.5M $218M $67.3M
Share buybacks $56.5M $9.8M $47.1M $20.8M $276M $78.3M $78.3M $109M $185M $174M
Dividends paid $65.8M $73.5M $82.6M $43.9M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M
Dividends and buybacks $122M $83.3M $130M $64.7M $276M $78.3M $78.3M $109M $185M $174M
Balance sheet
Cash and short-term investments $124M $351M $210M $576M $177M $924M $711M $765M $506M $607M
Total debt $602M $1.0B $1.0B $1.4B $1.6B $1.1B $999M $1.0B $864M $867M
Finance lease liabilities $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M
Current assets $348M $620M $460M $887M $623M $1.3B $1.1B $1.2B $1.3B $1.4B
Current liabilities $454M $265M $307M $833M $883M $497M $432M $432M $900M $1.1B
Inventory $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M $0.0M
Property and equipment, net $68.1M $79.8M $98.8M $128M $132M $161M $178M $188M $197M $213M
Total assets $2.1B $2.5B $2.6B $3.5B $3.7B $3.8B $3.5B $3.5B $3.7B $3.7B
Total liabilities $1.1B $1.4B $1.5B $2.2B $2.5B $1.8B $1.6B $1.6B $1.9B $1.9B
Shareholders' equity $915M $1.0B $1.0B $1.3B $1.2B $2.0B $1.9B $1.9B $1.8B $1.8B
Margins
Gross margin 83.2% 84.6% 83.4% 82.2% 84.6% 86.7% 86.7% 86.4% 85.7% 85.8%
Operating margin 27.8% 22.0% 20.2% 8.4% 11.9% 11.8% 14.3% 9.7% 8.1% 12.6%
EBITDA margin 41.7% 36.5% 35.7% 30.5% 31.7% 30.0% 31.1% 27.1% 23.2% 28.4%
Net margin 17.4% 12.5% 10.7% 20.8% 13.0% 35.1% 4.6% 3.0% 4.5% 3.3%
FCF margin 29.5% 20.1% 28.6% 32.6% 33.4% 28.4% 16.6% 15.5% 20.2% 19.8%
Returns
Return on capital 13.8% 11.2% 10.4% 3.3% 2.9% 7.1% 5.2% 4.2% 2.9% 6.0%
Return on capital employed 15.2% 12.9% 11.0% 3.6% 5.1% 5.5% 6.2% 4.3% 3.9% 6.8%
Return on equity 16.9% 14.4% 12.5% 18.7% 12.0% 31.3% 3.3% 2.2% 3.4% 2.7%
Return on assets 7.9% 6.2% 5.1% 7.2% 4.2% 13.4% 1.8% 1.2% 1.8% 1.3%
Growth
Revenue growth 21.3% 27.9% 8.0% −13.0% 10.3% 22.3% −1.8% −1.9% 2.8% 3.5%
Net income growth 14.1% −8.5% −7.7% 70.0% −31.1% 229.7% −87.2% −34.9% 51.9% −24.9%
EPS growth 14.7% −9.6% −8.5% 69.5% −27.6% 226.1% −86.9% −34.6% 59.6% −19.0%
FCF growth 21.7% −12.7% 53.4% −0.9% 13.3% 3.9% −42.8% −8.3% 34.3% 1.5%
Share count change −0.3% 1.5% 0.5% 0.2% −3.9% 1.6% −1.8% −1.2% −4.2% −7.7%
Financial health
Net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 1.6x 1.9x 2.7x 3.8x 0.4x 0.7x 0.6x 1.1x 0.6x
Debt / equity 0.7x 1.0x 1.0x 1.1x 1.3x 0.6x 0.5x 0.5x 0.5x 0.5x
Interest coverage 5.7x 4.2x 3.9x 3.4x 2.4x 2.1x 5.4x 3.2x 3.2x 4.9x
Current ratio 0.8x 2.3x 1.5x 1.1x 0.7x 2.6x 2.5x 2.8x 1.4x 1.3x
Quick ratio 0.8x 2.3x 1.5x 1.1x 0.7x 2.6x 2.5x 2.8x 1.4x 1.3x
Capital allocation
Capex / revenue 2.8% 3.5% 4.7% 6.7% 8.0% 8.0% 7.6% 8.0% 7.6% 8.2%
Stock comp / revenue 1.6% 2.0% 2.3% 2.3% 2.1% 1.8% 1.9% 2.3% 2.9% 3.1%
Payouts / FCF 47.5% 37.1% 37.6% 18.9% 71.1% 19.5% 34.0% 51.4% 65.3% 60.4%
Quality scores
Piotroski F-score 8.0 6.0 4.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 6.0 6.0 7.0 6.0
Altman Z'' 2.3 3.3 2.7 1.7 1.0 4.2 4.2 4.4 3.1 3.0
Accruals ratio −6.8% −5.5% −10.9% −6.4% −9.2% −0.5% −7.5% −8.0% −9.1% −9.8%

Source: SEC EDGAR XBRL filings (CIK 0001084048). Data updated October 19, 2026. Quarterly fourth quarters are the full year minus the first nine months. For information only — not investment advice. Check the original filings before relying on any figure.

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