Fourth quarter and fiscal year 2026
Filed Aug 5, 2026Filed under $NWSNews Corporation reports fourth quarter revenue growth of 11%, Total Segment EBITDA growth of 31%, and full-year free cash flow growth of 42%.
Fourth quarter revenue increased 11%, Total Segment EBITDA increased 31%, net income from continuing operations increased 167%, and full-year operating cash flow and free cash flow increased 26% and 42%, respectively. Digital Real Estate Services, Dow Jones and Book Publishing drove growth, although Book Publishing and News Media posted lower full-year Segment EBITDA.
Key metrics
as reported| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenues, fourth quarterGAAP | $2.34 billion | – | 11% increase |
| Adjusted Revenues, fourth quarternon-GAAP | – | increased 7% | |
| Foreign currency impact on revenues, fourth quarterother | $71 million, or 4%, positive impact | – | – |
| Net income from continuing operations, fourth quarterGAAP | $230 million | – | 167% increase |
| Total Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $423 million | – | 31% increase |
| Adjusted Total Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | – | increased 25% | |
| Net income from continuing operations per share attributable to News Corporation stockholders, fourth quarterGAAP | $0.33 | – | – |
| Adjusted EPS, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $0.35 | – | – |
| Total revenues, fiscal 2026GAAP | $9.03 billion | – | 7% increase |
| Adjusted Revenues, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | – | increased 4% | |
| Foreign currency impact on revenues, fiscal 2026other | $189 million, or 2%, positive impact | – | – |
| Net income from continuing operations, fiscal 2026GAAP | $743 million | – | 15% increase |
| Total Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $1.63 billion | – | 15% increase |
| Adjusted Total Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | – | increased 12% | |
| Diluted net income from continuing operations per share attributable to News Corporation stockholders, fiscal 2026GAAP | $1.03 | – | – |
| Adjusted diluted EPS, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $1.18 | – | – |
| Operating cash flow, fiscal 2026GAAP | $1.24 billion | – | increased by 26% |
| Free cash flow, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $811 million | – | 42% higher than the prior year |
| Dow Jones Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $181 million | – | 20% |
| Digital Real Estate Services Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $222 million | – | 46% |
| Book Publishing Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $57 million | – | 14% |
| News Media Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $24 million | – | (14)% |
| Other Segment EBITDA, fourth quarternon-GAAP | $(61) million | – | (3)% |
| Dow Jones Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $663 million | – | 13% |
| Digital Real Estate Services Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $741 million | – | 23% |
| Book Publishing Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $287 million | – | (3)% |
| News Media Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $139 million | – | (9)% |
| Other Segment EBITDA, fiscal 2026non-GAAP | $(203) million | – | 9% |
Segments
| Segment | Revenue | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones, fourth quarterHigher circulation and subscription revenues and higher digital advertising revenues. | $644 million | – | 7% |
| Digital Real Estate Services, fourth quarterHigher real estate revenues; REA Group revenues rose 21% and Move grew revenue by 13%. | $553 million | – | 19% |
| Book Publishing, fourth quarterA strong frontlist, higher backlist sales and accelerated growth in digital revenues. | $566 million | – | 15% |
| News Media, fourth quarter | $574 million | – | 5% |
| Dow Jones, fiscal 2026Higher circulation and subscription and advertising revenues. | $2,497 million | – | 7% |
| Digital Real Estate Services, fiscal 2026Higher revenues at the Digital Real Estate Services segment. | $2,016 million | – | 12% |
| Book Publishing, fiscal 2026Higher revenues at the Book Publishing segment. | $2,288 million | – | 6% |
| News Media, fiscal 2026 | $2,227 million | – | 3% |
Capital returns
- Buyback of $643 million.
- The buyback accelerated to well over four times the prior year’s rate.
What drove it
- Fourth quarter results included a $71 million, or 4%, positive impact from foreign currency fluctuations.
- Fiscal 2026 results included a $189 million, or 2%, positive impact from foreign currency fluctuations.
- Dow Jones fourth-quarter digital revenues represented 84% of total revenues, compared to 83% in the prior year.
- Dow Jones Risk & Compliance revenues grew 11% to $102 million in the quarter and 16% to $392 million for fiscal 2026.
- Dow Jones Energy revenues grew 4% to $76 million in the quarter and 8% to $301 million for fiscal 2026.
- Digital-only subscriptions to Dow Jones news products grew 9% to nearly 6.3 million.
- Digital advertising revenue at Dow Jones grew 10% in the quarter and 9% for fiscal 2026.
- Digital Real Estate Services delivered fourth-quarter Segment EBITDA growth of 46%.
Concerns
- Book Publishing fiscal 2026 Segment EBITDA declined 3% to $287 million despite revenue growth of 6%.
- News Media fourth-quarter Segment EBITDA declined 14% to $24 million while fiscal 2026 Segment EBITDA declined 9% to $139 million.
- Dow Jones fourth-quarter Segment EBITDA growth was partially offset by increases in employee and technology costs.
- Dow Jones print advertising revenues decreased 6% in the fourth quarter.
- Lower print volume partly offset Dow Jones circulation revenue growth.
- Fiscal 2026 net income growth was partially offset by lower Other, net driven by the gain on the sale of REA Group’s investment in PropertyGuru in the prior year.
What to watch
- Whether Digital Real Estate Services sustains its fourth-quarter 19% revenue growth and 46% Segment EBITDA growth.
- The progression of Dow Jones content licensing, professional information revenue, digital circulation and digital advertising.
- Subscription conversion from introductory promotions to higher pricing and the continued shift from print to digital-only subscriptions.
- The sustainability of Book Publishing profitability following the fiscal 2026 Segment EBITDA decline.
- News Media profitability following lower fourth-quarter and full-year Segment EBITDA.
- Further developments in News Corp’s content relationships with OpenAI and Meta and discussions with other companies.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- Operating cash flow increased by 26% to $1.24 billion for fiscal 2026.
- Full year free cash flow of $811 million was 42% higher than the prior year.
- Free cash flow growth was driven by exceptional fourth quarter results coupled with working capital improvements.
Analysis
News Corp ended fiscal 2026 with accelerated fourth-quarter operating performance. Fourth-quarter revenue increased 11% to $2.34 billion and Total Segment EBITDA increased 31% to $423 million. Net income from continuing operations increased 167% to $230 million, while reported EPS from continuing operations was $0.33 compared with $0.09 in the prior year and Adjusted EPS was $0.35 compared with $0.19. The quarter included a $71 million, or 4%, positive impact from foreign currency fluctuations, while Adjusted Revenues increased 7% and Adjusted Total Segment EBITDA increased 25%.
The core growth engines identified by the company were Digital Real Estate Services, Dow Jones and Book Publishing. Digital Real Estate Services generated fourth-quarter revenue of $553 million, up 19%, and Segment EBITDA of $222 million, up 46%. Dow Jones generated revenue of $644 million, up 7%, and Segment EBITDA of $181 million, up 20%, supported by circulation, subscriptions, content licensing and digital advertising. Book Publishing revenue increased 15% to $566 million and Segment EBITDA increased 14% to $57 million, supported by frontlist, backlist and digital sales.
Dow Jones showed continued digital and subscription progress. Digital revenues represented 84% of quarterly revenue, and digital-only subscriptions to its news products increased 9% to nearly 6.3 million. Digital-only Wall Street Journal subscriptions increased 8% to nearly 4.5 million and represented 93% of total Wall Street Journal subscriptions. Professional information growth included Dow Jones Risk & Compliance revenue growth of 11% to $102 million, while digital advertising revenue increased 10%. These gains were partly offset by a 6% decrease in print advertising revenue, lower print volume, and higher employee and technology costs.
For fiscal 2026, revenue increased 7% to $9.03 billion, net income from continuing operations increased 15% to $743 million, and Total Segment EBITDA increased 15% to $1.63 billion. Operating cash flow increased 26% to $1.24 billion and free cash flow increased 42% to $811 million, with the company citing exceptional fourth-quarter results and working capital improvements. The company returned capital through a $643 million buyback. Full-year profitability was not uniform across segments: Digital Real Estate Services and Dow Jones expanded Segment EBITDA by 23% and 13%, respectively, while Book Publishing declined 3% and News Media declined 9%.
No forward financial guidance was included in the provided filing text. The reported period therefore centers on execution in the core growth businesses, cash-flow conversion and stepped-up repurchases. Key reported areas requiring continued attention are the durability of digital real estate growth, the conversion of Dow Jones customers to higher pricing, ongoing print declines, Book Publishing’s lower full-year Segment EBITDA, and News Media’s lower profitability.
Management, verbatim
We concluded Fiscal 2026 with an exceptional fourth quarter performance, including an 11% increase in revenues to $2.34 billion and the highest profitability on record.
Robert Thomson, Chief Executive
Our enhanced cash position enabled us to aggressively return capital to shareholders, with the buyback accelerating to well over four times the prior year’s rate at $643 million.
Robert Thomson, Chief Executive
We have trusted content relationships with OpenAI and Meta, and are in advanced discussions with several other companies.
Robert Thomson, Chief Executive
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Forward financial guidance.
- Prior outlook for guidance comparison.
- Gross profit and gross margin.
- Operating income and operating margin.
- Operating expenses.
- Cash balance.
- Debt balance.
- Dividend amount or dividend declaration.
- Detailed fourth-quarter operating cash flow.
- Detailed fourth-quarter free cash flow.
- Prior-year operating cash flow amount.
- Prior-year free cash flow amount.
- Segment revenue drivers for News Media.
- Full-year segment-specific operational commentary beyond the provided excerpt.
- Exact dollar values for Adjusted Revenues and Adjusted Total Segment EBITDA.
AlphaAI analysis generated from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure was cross-checked against the filing text; consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.