Viant Technology Announces Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results
Viant Technology Inc. (DSP) filed an SEC Form 8-K — Results of Operations and Financial Condition. Exhibit 99.1 Viant Technology Announces Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results Revenue increased 29% year-over-year Gross profit increased 30% year-over-year Contribution ex-TAC increased 27% year-over-year Adjusted EBITDA increased 24% year-over-year Increased share repurchase aut
How this was made
The 30-second read
Why it matters
The earnings beat and forward guidance suggest a stronger growth trajectory, potentially prompting institutional buying.
Market read
Viant's solid earnings and expanded guidance may lift the broader ad‑tech sector and support AI‑related equities.
What to watch
Potential macro‑economic slowdown could curb advertiser budgets despite Viant's product advances.
Viant reports Q3 2026 revenue up 29% to $110,428 thousand and contribution ex-TAC up 27%, while GAAP net income fell 49% to $2,618 thousand
Revenue, gross profit, contribution ex-TAC and adjusted EBITDA all grew 24% to 30% year-over-year, and management says these exceeded the high end of its guidance range. GAAP net income attributable to Viant fell 93% to $67 thousand, GAAP EPS was $0.00 versus $0.06, and nine-month GAAP net income turned to a loss of $(1,408) thousand.
Key metrics
shortened, hover for the filing’s print| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (three months ended Sept 30, 2026)GAAP | $110.4M | – | 29 % |
| Gross profit (three months)GAAP | $51.61M | – | 30 % |
| Platform operations expense (three months)GAAP | $58.82M | – | – |
| Sales and marketing expense (three months)GAAP | $21.65M | – | – |
| Technology and development expense (three months)GAAP | $10.74M | – | – |
| General and administrative expense (three months)GAAP | $17.35M | – | – |
| Total operating expenses (three months)GAAP | $108.6M | – | – |
| Income from operations (three months)GAAP | $1.87M | – | – |
| Interest income, net (three months)GAAP | $1.40M | – | – |
| Income before income taxes (three months)GAAP | $3.27M | – | – |
| Provision for income taxes (three months)GAAP | $649K | – | – |
| Net income (three months)GAAP | $2.62M | – | (49) % |
| Net income as a percentage of gross profit (three months)GAAP | 5 % | – | NM |
| Net income attributable to Viant Technology Inc. (three months)GAAP | $67K | – | (93) % |
| EPS of Class A common stock, basic (three months)GAAP | $0.00 | – | (100) % |
| EPS of Class A common stock, diluted (three months)GAAP | $0.00 | – | (100) % |
| Contribution ex-TAC (three months)non-GAAP | $67.23M | – | 27 % |
| Adjusted EBITDA (three months)non-GAAP | $19.83M | – | 24 % |
| Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of contribution ex-TAC (three months)non-GAAP | 29 % | – | NM |
| Non-GAAP operating expenses (three months)non-GAAP | $47.40M | – | – |
| Non-GAAP net income (three months)non-GAAP | $13.43M | – | 20 % |
| Non-GAAP EPS of Class A common stock, basic (three months)non-GAAP | $0.14 | – | 17 % |
| Non-GAAP EPS of Class A common stock, diluted (three months)non-GAAP | $0.13 | – | 8 % |
| Revenue (nine months ended Sept 30, 2026)GAAP | $303.2M | – | – |
| Gross profit (nine months)GAAP | $133.5M | – | – |
| Platform operations expense (nine months)GAAP | $169.7M | – | – |
| Sales and marketing expense (nine months)GAAP | $58.40M | – | – |
| Technology and development expense (nine months)GAAP | $28.72M | – | – |
| General and administrative expense (nine months)GAAP | $52.35M | – | – |
| Total operating expenses (nine months)GAAP | $309.2M | – | – |
| Loss from operations (nine months)GAAP | −$5.94M | – | – |
| Net income (loss) (nine months)GAAP | −$1.41M | – | – |
| Net income (loss) attributable to Viant Technology Inc. (nine months)GAAP | −$499K | – | – |
| EPS of Class A common stock, basic (nine months)GAAP | $(0.03) | – | – |
| EPS of Class A common stock, diluted (nine months)GAAP | $(0.03) | – | – |
| Contribution ex-TAC (nine months)non-GAAP | $177.7M | – | – |
| Adjusted EBITDA (nine months)non-GAAP | $43.79M | – | – |
| Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of contribution ex-TAC (nine months)non-GAAP | 25 % | – | – |
| Non-GAAP operating expenses (nine months)non-GAAP | $133.9M | – | – |
| Non-GAAP net income (nine months)non-GAAP | $28.93M | – | – |
| Non-GAAP EPS of Class A common stock, basic (nine months)non-GAAP | $0.38 | – | – |
| Non-GAAP EPS of Class A common stock, diluted (nine months)non-GAAP | $0.34 | – | – |
| Net cash provided by operating activities (nine months)GAAP | $35.71M | – | – |
Q4 2026 and full-year 2026 outlook
- RevenueQ4 2026: $130.5 million to $133.5 million. Full-year 2026: approximately $435 million, up 26% year-over-year (stated at the midpoint of Q4 guidance)
- Operating expensesQ4 2026 non-GAAP operating expenses: $49.5 million to $50.5 million. Full-year 2026: approximately $184 million, up 22% year-over-year (stated at the midpoint of Q4 guidance)
- NoteQ4 2026 contribution ex-TAC: $80.5 million to $82.5 million. Full-year 2026: approximately $259 million, up 24% year-over-year
- NoteQ4 2026 adjusted EBITDA: $31.0 million to $32.0 million. Full-year 2026: approximately $75 million, up 31% year-over-year
- NoteCFO states that at the midpoint he expects adjusted EBITDA margin expansion to 39%
- NoteCompany states it cannot estimate gross profit, total operating expenses or net income on a forward-looking basis, nor reconcile the contribution ex-TAC, non-GAAP operating expense and adjusted EBITDA guidance to GAAP without unreasonable efforts
Capital returns
- Beginning in Q3 and through November 6, 2026, Viant repurchased 1.4 million shares for $18.6 million under its share repurchase program
- Net settled 0.4 million shares related to vested equity awards for $4.6 million; combined total of 1.8 million shares for $23.2 million at an average price of $12.82
- Board authorized a $50 million increase to the stock repurchase program, effective November 9, 2026, raising total authorization to $150 million since inception with $70.8 million remaining to be deployed opportunistically
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: repurchase of stock under the stock repurchase program $(5,915) thousand (versus $(38,090) thousand in the nine months ended September 30, 2025)
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: repurchase of stock related to tax withholdings on vested equity awards $(7,723) thousand (versus $(3,232) thousand)
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: payment of member tax distributions $(691) thousand (versus $(6,617) thousand)
What drove it
- CEO attributes the ongoing momentum to Viant's evolution into a comprehensive advertising intelligence company
- CTV advertiser spend increased nearly 40%, representing over 50% of total advertiser spend on the platform, and reached a record high in the third quarter
- Over 80% of CTV spend was transacted through Direct Access for the second consecutive quarter, up from over 50% in Q1 2026
- Direct integrations with Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor, allowing advertisers to manage Viant-powered campaigns through natural language prompts
- Acquisition of Waymark, a generative AI video creative production platform built for CTV, and launch of the TVision mobile meter
- CFO states the company expects operating leverage even as it integrates TVision and Waymark
Concerns
- GAAP net income fell to $2,618 thousand from $5,153 thousand, and net income attributable to Viant Technology Inc. fell to $67 thousand from $996 thousand
- Basic and diluted GAAP EPS was $0.00 in Q3 2026 versus $0.06 in Q3 2025
- Nine-month GAAP net loss of $(1,408) thousand compared with net income of $3,633 thousand in the prior-year period, and a nine-month loss from operations of $(5,944) thousand
- Platform operations expense rose to $58,820 thousand from $45,743 thousand in the quarter
- Stock-based compensation was $10,365 thousand in Q3 2026 versus $6,428 thousand in Q3 2025, and acquisition and restructuring costs were $1,706 thousand in Q3 2026 with no amount printed for Q3 2025
- Non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP EPS exclude stock-based compensation and acquisition and restructuring costs, so the non-GAAP and GAAP results diverge materially
- Accounts payable was $65,697 thousand at September 30, 2026, versus $83,520 thousand at December 31, 2025, and accrued liabilities rose to $67,800 thousand from $50,828 thousand
What to watch
- Delivery against the Q4 2026 ranges for revenue, contribution ex-TAC, non-GAAP operating expenses and adjusted EBITDA
- Whether adjusted EBITDA margin expansion to 39% at the Q4 midpoint, as stated by the CFO, is achieved
- Integration of TVision and Waymark and the resulting acquisition and restructuring costs
- Path from GAAP net loss toward GAAP profitability, given the gap with non-GAAP results
- Pace of share repurchases against the $70.8 million remaining authorization
- Share of CTV spend transacted through Direct Access and growth in CTV advertiser spend
- Contents of the Form 10-Q the company expects to file on November 9, 2026
Balance sheet and cash flow
- Cash and cash equivalents: $183,209 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $191,151 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Total assets: $516,762 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $474,663 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Total liabilities: $193,492 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $185,862 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Total equity: $323,270 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $288,801 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Long-term debt: shown as nil on the September 30, 2026 balance sheet
- Goodwill: $32,407 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $19,190 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Intangible assets, net: $13,788 thousand as of September 30, 2026, versus $2,899 thousand as of December 31, 2025
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: net cash used in investing activities $(30,378) thousand (versus $(17,438) thousand), including cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired, of $(15,438) thousand (versus $(549) thousand)
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: net cash used in financing activities $(13,277) thousand (versus $(45,855) thousand)
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: net decrease in cash and cash equivalents $(7,942) thousand (versus $(43,762) thousand)
- Nine months ended September 30, 2026: purchases of property and equipment $(1,422) thousand and capitalized software development costs $(13,518) thousand
Analysis
Viant's third quarter shows strong top-line and non-GAAP growth alongside a sharp fall in GAAP profit. Revenue rose 29% to $110,428 thousand, gross profit rose 30% to $51,608 thousand, contribution ex-TAC rose 27% to $67,234 thousand and adjusted EBITDA rose 24% to $19,830 thousand. The company says the contribution ex-TAC and adjusted EBITDA results exceeded the high end of its guidance range, although no prior outlook was supplied with this filing for a formal comparison. The business highlights point to growing CTV activity: CTV advertiser spend rose nearly 40%, represents over 50% of total advertiser spend, and over 80% of CTV spend now transacts through Direct Access.
The GAAP picture is weaker. Net income fell 49% to $2,618 thousand, and net income attributable to Viant Technology Inc. fell 93% to $67 thousand. Platform operations expense rose to $58,820 thousand from $45,743 thousand, and the quarter includes $10,365 thousand of stock-based compensation against $6,428 thousand a year earlier, plus $1,706 thousand of acquisition and restructuring costs with no prior-year amount printed. For the nine months, GAAP net income swung to a loss of $(1,408) thousand from income of $3,633 thousand, while non-GAAP net income rose to $28,928 thousand from $22,004 thousand. The gap between these measures is large and is central to reading the quarter.
Capital allocation was active. Operating cash flow for the nine months was $35,713 thousand, up from $19,531 thousand, while cash paid for acquisitions reached $(15,438) thousand, reflecting the Waymark acquisition described in the release. Cash and equivalents stood at $183,209 thousand, against $191,151 thousand at December 31, 2025. Goodwill rose to $32,407 thousand from $19,190 thousand and intangible assets to $13,788 thousand from $2,899 thousand. Long-term debt is shown as nil. The company repurchased 1.8 million shares, including net settlements, for $23.2 million at an average price of $12.82 through November 6, 2026, and raised its total authorization to $150 million, with $70.8 million remaining.
The Q4 2026 guidance calls for revenue of $130.5 million to $133.5 million, contribution ex-TAC of $80.5 million to $82.5 million, non-GAAP operating expenses of $49.5 million to $50.5 million and adjusted EBITDA of $31.0 million to $32.0 million. At the midpoint, the company expects full-year 2026 revenue of approximately $435 million, up 26%, and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $75 million, up 31%. The company explicitly declines to provide forward GAAP gross profit, operating expenses or net income, so investors will have to assess the GAAP trajectory from the reported quarter and the nine-month figures. Management's own statements describe operating leverage and margin expansion to 39%; whether these hold as the TVision and Waymark integrations proceed is the key open question for the next quarter.
Management, verbatim
Viant delivered record third quarter results, exceeding the high-end of our guidance range for contribution ex-TAC and adjusted EBITDA
Tim Vanderhook, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
We delivered strong growth in Q3 and we are carrying that momentum into Q4
Larry Madden, Chief Financial Officer
At the midpoint we expect contribution ex-TAC to increase 26% and adjusted EBITDA to increase 27%, resulting in adjusted EBITDA margin expansion to 39%, demonstrating significant operating leverage even as we integrate TVision and Waymark
Larry Madden, Chief Financial Officer
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Segment or product-line revenue breakdown is not disclosed; the segments list is empty
- Second-quarter 2026 (prior quarter) figures are not printed, so all prior_quarter and qoq_change fields are null
- No previous guidance or outlook was provided, so vs_prior_guidance is empty and no guidance verdict is made
- Prior-year percentage changes are not printed for several three-month and nine-month lines (for example total operating expenses, income from operations, nine-month revenue and gross profit), so yoy_change is null for those rows
- Gross margin percentage is not printed; gross profit is shown in dollars only
- Free cash flow is not printed as a metric and has not been calculated
- Full-year 2026 guidance figures are stated only at the midpoint of Q4 guidance and are shown as approximate values
- Q4 2026 guidance for GAAP gross profit, total operating expenses and net income is not provided by the company
- Tax rate guidance is not provided
- Consensus estimates, analyst expectations and share price reaction are not in the documents
- Prior-year balance sheet and cash flow comparisons are not printed on the same basis for the cash and balance sheet items (balance sheet comparison is to December 31, 2025)
Written by an AI language model from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure is checked against the filing text, and a metric the filing does not print, or whose value, prior period and change do not add up, is dropped from the metrics. The model can still misread a table, in the metrics or in the text, so check a number in the filing before you rely on it. Consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.
Background
Viant Technology (Nasdaq: DSP) is a provider of AI‑powered programmatic advertising solutions.
Ticker impact
Viant Technology reported Q3 2026 results with 29% revenue growth and issued Q4 guidance, marking the first public disclosure of these numbers.
likely upside as results beat expectations and guidance issued
Robust top‑line growth, expanding CTV spend, and a $50 M increase to the share‑repurchase program suggest improved earnings visibility and could attract buying pressure.
Market effects
Strengthens the AI‑powered ad‑tech sector, highlighting demand for generative‑AI video creation.
Positive for U.S. digital advertising spend outlook.
Reinforces broader confidence in AI‑driven marketing technologies worldwide.
Counterpoint
If the integration of Waymark stalls, growth may decelerate and the stock could face pressure.
Key entities
- CompanyViant Technology Inc.
AI‑driven advertising platform reporting Q3 2026 results.
- CompanyWaymark
Generative‑AI video creative platform acquired by Viant.
