fiscal fourth quarter 2026
Filed Aug 6, 2026QuinStreet Reports Record Fiscal Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2026 Results
Record quarterly revenue grew 43% year-over-year, GAAP net income grew 496% year-over-year, and adjusted EBITDA grew 87% year-over-year with a 270 basis-point margin improvement. The company also issued fiscal 2027 revenue and adjusted EBITDA growth and margin-expansion expectations.
Key metrics
shortened, hover for the filing’s print| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue, fiscal fourth quarterGAAP | $373.9M | – | up 43% year-over-year |
| GAAP net income, fiscal fourth quarterGAAP | $19.1M | – | up 496% year-over-year |
| GAAP net income per diluted share, fiscal fourth quarterGAAP | $0.33 per diluted share | – | – |
| Adjusted net income, fiscal fourth quarternon-GAAP | $29M | – | – |
| Adjusted net income per diluted share, fiscal fourth quarternon-GAAP | $0.50 per diluted share | – | – |
| Adjusted EBITDA, fiscal fourth quarternon-GAAP | $41.4M | – | up 87% year-over-year |
| Adjusted EBITDA margin, fiscal fourth quarternon-GAAP | 11.1% margin | – | a 270 basis-point improvement over the year-ago quarter |
| Revenue, full fiscal year 2026GAAP | $1.3B | – | up 18% year-over-year |
| GAAP net income, full fiscal year 2026GAAP | $81.2M | – | up 1,626% year-over-year |
| GAAP net income per diluted share, full fiscal year 2026GAAP | $1.40 per diluted share | – | – |
| Adjusted net income, full fiscal year 2026non-GAAP | $73.8M | – | – |
| Adjusted net income per diluted share, full fiscal year 2026non-GAAP | $1.27 per diluted share | – | – |
| Adjusted EBITDA, full fiscal year 2026non-GAAP | $112.5M | – | up 38% year-over-year |
| Adjusted EBITDA margin, full fiscal year 2026non-GAAP | 8.7% margin | – | a 130-basis point year-over-year margin expansion |
| Operating cash flow, full fiscal year 2026GAAP | $130.9M | – | – |
| Cash and cash equivalents, quarter endGAAP | $128.3M | – | – |
fiscal Q1 2027 and fiscal year 2027 outlook
- Revenuefiscal Q1: between $370 and $380 million; fiscal year 2027: $1.45 billion to $1.55 billion
- Notefiscal Q1 adjusted EBITDA: between $38 and $40 million
- Notefiscal Q1 midpoint: 31% growth year-over-year
- Notefiscal Q1 adjusted EBITDA midpoint: 90% growth, a 10.4% margin and a 320 basis-point margin expansion year-over-year
- Notefiscal year 2027 midpoint: 16% growth year-over-year
- Notefiscal year 2027 adjusted EBITDA: $150 to $160 million
- Notefiscal year 2027 adjusted EBITDA midpoint: growth of 38%, a 10.3% margin and another 160 basis-point margin expansion year-over-year
What drove it
- The company reported strength in both Financial Services and Home Services.
- Management said revenue growth continues to be driven by the shift of marketing budgets to digital and performance marketing.
- Management cited its ability to deliver results at scale for clients and industry-leading technologies, including core AI optimization algorithms.
- Management said it is accelerating improvements in performance and productivity from new AI applications across the business.
Concerns
- The company cannot provide a quantitative reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA guidance to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure without unreasonable efforts because of the variability, complexity and low visibility of items including taxes and income and expense from changes in fair value of contingent consideration from acquisitions.
- Management said it will refine its fiscal year 2027 outlook as the year progresses.
What to watch
- Delivery against fiscal Q1 revenue guidance of between $370 and $380 million.
- Delivery against fiscal Q1 adjusted EBITDA guidance of between $38 and $40 million.
- Whether Financial Services and Home Services continue to provide the reported strength.
- Progress toward the fiscal year 2027 adjusted EBITDA outlook of $150 to $160 million and the stated 10.3% margin at the midpoint.
- Further performance and productivity improvements from new AI applications.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- For full fiscal year 2026, the Company generated $130.9 million in operating cash flow.
- The Company closed the quarter with $128.3 million in cash and cash equivalents.
Analysis
QuinStreet closed fiscal fourth quarter 2026 with record revenue of $373.9 million, up 43% year-over-year, and record GAAP net income of $19.1 million, up 496% year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA was $41.4 million, up 87% year-over-year. The reported quarter therefore showed profit growth outpacing revenue growth on both the GAAP net-income and adjusted-EBITDA measures.
Margin performance was a central feature of the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA reached an 11.1% margin, described by management as a 270 basis-point improvement over the year-ago quarter. Management attributed the revenue performance to strength in both Financial Services and Home Services and identified the ongoing shift of marketing budgets to digital and performance marketing, client results at scale, and its technology platform as growth drivers.
For full fiscal year 2026, revenue was $1.3 billion, up 18% year-over-year, while GAAP net income was $81.2 million, up 1,626% year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA increased 38% year-over-year to $112.5 million and represented an 8.7% margin, a 130-basis point year-over-year expansion. The release also reported $130.9 million in operating cash flow for the full year and $128.3 million in cash and cash equivalents at quarter end.
The outlook calls for fiscal Q1 revenue between $370 and $380 million and adjusted EBITDA between $38 and $40 million. At the midpoint, management said this implies 31% revenue growth year-over-year, 90% adjusted EBITDA growth, a 10.4% margin, and a 320 basis-point margin expansion year-over-year. The guide indicates that management expects strong double-digit growth to continue while maintaining adjusted EBITDA margins near the fiscal fourth-quarter level.
For fiscal year 2027, QuinStreet's initial outlook is revenue of $1.45 billion to $1.55 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $150 to $160 million. Management characterized the respective midpoints as implying 16% revenue growth year-over-year and 38% adjusted EBITDA growth, with a 10.3% margin and another 160 basis-point margin expansion year-over-year. The key reported execution markers are continued growth in the two client verticals, delivery of the EBITDA-margin expansion plan, and management's future refinements to the full-year outlook.
Management, verbatim
Fiscal Q4 was another record quarter of strong performance and progress, capping a record year for QuinStreet,
Doug Valenti, CEO of QuinStreet
We expect to continue to grow revenue at strong double-digit rates and to expand margins in fiscal year 2027 and beyond.
Doug Valenti, CEO of QuinStreet
We believe that there may be opportunities to grow revenue and expand margins even further, and we will refine our outlook as the year progresses,
Doug Valenti, CEO of QuinStreet
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Prior-year revenue, net income, adjusted net income, EPS, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, operating cash flow, and cash balances as absolute figures
- Prior-quarter comparisons for reported metrics
- GAAP gross profit and gross margin
- GAAP operating income or loss and operating margin
- Segment revenue and segment revenue growth for Financial Services and Home Services
- Quarterly operating cash flow
- Free cash flow and normalized free cash flow amounts
- Debt balance
- Share repurchases, dividends, or other capital-return amounts
- Guidance for gross margin, operating expenses, and tax rate
- Prior-period outlook for comparison with actual reported results
- Financial-statement tables and non-GAAP reconciliation amounts beyond the provided filing text
AlphAI 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.