The New York Times Company

Q2 consolidated revenues grew 11% year over year. Digital-only subscription revenues increased 16.4% to $408 million, total subscription revenues rose 11.7% to approximately $538 million, digital advertising revenues increased 20.7% to $114 million, and total advertising revenues rose approximately 11.3% to $149 million. Affiliate, licensing and other revenues increased approximately 7% to $75.5 million. Adjusted operating profit was approximately $155 million, adjusted diluted EPS was $0.69, and AOP grew 16%. For Q3 2026, management expects digital-only subscription revenues to increase 12% to 15%, total subscription revenues 9% to 11%, digital advertising mid- to high-teens, total advertising high single to low double digits, affiliate/licensing/other low- to mid-single digits, and adjusted operating costs up 8% to 9%. Management also said 2026 should be another year of healthy growth in revenues, AOP, and strong free cash flow generation.

Meredith Kopit Levien framed the quarter as evidence that the company’s strategy is working across journalism, lifestyle, and video. She emphasized adding value to the portfolio through app upgrades, new listening/commenting features, cooking improvements, Wordle enhancements, and expanded video formats including a new Shows tab. Her tone was confident and strategic, with repeated references to long-term resilience, direct audience relationships, and becoming a preferred brand for watching news as well as reading and listening.

Will Bardeen pointed to broad-based revenue strength and disciplined investment, noting 11% consolidated revenue growth, 16% AOP growth to about $155 million, and adjusted diluted EPS of $0.69, up $0.11 or 19%. He said digital-only subscription revenue of $408 million and total subscription revenue of about $538 million were within guidance, while digital advertising at $114 million and affiliate/licensing/other at $75.5 million both beat expectations. He also highlighted approximately $266 million of free cash flow in the first half, about $160 million returned to shareholders through $92 million of repurchases and $68 million of dividends, and reiterated the midterm goal of returning at least 50% of free cash flow to shareholders.

Analysts focused on why sales and marketing costs ran above plan, the softer-looking Q3 digital subscription guide, and what is driving digital ad strength. Management said the higher cost growth mainly reflected variable compensation tied to outperformance, plus ad-related costs and a new middle-market ad sales team, not a change in strategy. On subscriptions, they pointed to mix and pricing effects, including last year’s Mini paywalling and step-up pricing; on ads, they said growth was broad-based across the portfolio, while video is still a minor contributor to ad revenue so far. They also addressed traffic loss from big platforms, saying the company is building resilience by strengthening direct relationships and product experiences.