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what it is
USA TODAY Co. sells newspapers, digital subscriptions, and ad services across USA TODAY Network and LocaliQ.
how it gets paid
Last year Usa Today made $2.3B in revenue. Print subscriptions and single copy was the main engine at $0.90B, or 39% of sales.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 8.3% last year. The quarter's $1.7B revenue matters because it is massive next to a $936M market cap.
what just happened
TDAY posted $1.7B in quarterly revenue, but the earnings reports do not agree on EPS.
At a glance
C+ balance sheet — struggling to keep the lights on
25/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
-$0.54 fy2024 eps est
$3B fy2024 rev est
1.9% operating margin
xvary composite: 34/100 — weak
What they do
USA TODAY Co. sells newspapers, digital subscriptions, and ad services across USA TODAY Network and LocaliQ.
You still get a national brand with 11,700 employees. Leaving is painful because your readers and advertisers are tied to one USA TODAY system. Debt, or money you owe, is $1.1B against $2.3B of sales.
How they make money
$2.3B
annual revenue · their business grew -8.3% last year
Print subscriptions and single copy
$0.90B
dn
Digital subscriptions and USA TODAY Network
$0.45B
up
LocaliQ digital marketing services
$0.50B
dn
Print advertising and niche publications
$0.30B
dn
Commercial printing and distribution
$0.15B
flat
The products that matter
ad sales and marketing services
Advertising & Marketing
$1.4B · 61% of revenue shown
it's the largest bucket at $1.4B, and it still fell 10%. if this line cannot stabilize, the turnaround math gets ugly fast.
largest segment
reader revenue
Circulation & Subscriptions
$0.9B · 39% of revenue shown
this $0.9B stream fell 6%. subscription revenue is usually the steadier part of a media model, which makes the decline here harder to ignore.
declining slower
online ads and services
Digital Marketing Solutions
2026 goal · over 50% of revenue
digital revenue grew in Q4 2025, and management wants it above 50% of total revenue in 2026. that's the entire bull case in one sentence.
pivot bet
Key numbers
$2.3B
TTM revenue
The business is still large enough to matter, but not large enough to ignore a $1.1B debt stack.
8.3%
annual sales change
That is the gap between a company that is alive and a company that is shrinking.
$1.1B
long-term debt
Debt is 48% of annual sales, so every weak quarter gets more annoying.
1.9%
operating margin
For every $100 of revenue, the company lost $1.90 before debt payments and taxes.
Financial health
C+
strength
- balance sheet grade C+ — weak — may struggle to fund operations
- risk rank 5 — safer than 5% of stocks
- price stability 10 / 100
- long-term debt $1.1B (53% of capital)
C+ — balance sheet grade and long-term debt are flagged. this stock carries more risk than average.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for TDAY right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
TDAY posted $1.7B in quarterly revenue, but the earnings reports do not agree on EPS.
EDGAR shows revenue of $1.7B and EPS of $0.21. Yahoo Finance's latest printout shows actual EPS of -$0.27 versus -$0.12 expected, so you should treat the headline with caution.
$1.7B
revenue
$0.21
eps
38.24%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The quarter's $1.7B revenue matters because it is massive next to a $936M market cap.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk here is print decline outrunning digital replacement.
med
Structural revenue decline
Revenue fell 8.3% to $2.3B last year, and management guided 2026 to flat or down in the low single digits. That means the decline is not just historical. It's still in the forecast.
If revenue keeps slipping, the digital pivot becomes a race against time instead of a growth plan.
med
Debt limiting flexibility
Long-term debt is $1.1B, equal to 53% of capital, on a company with a C+ balance sheet. Turnarounds want optionality. Debt removes it.
That leverage can crowd out investment in product, distribution, and acquisition if results stay soft.
med
Advertising sensitivity
Advertising & Marketing is the biggest revenue bucket at $1.4B, and it fell 10%. Ad markets tend to weaken quickly when budgets tighten. This company does not have the margins to shrug that off.
Pressure on ad pricing would hit the very segment management needs to fund the transition.
med
Execution risk on the digital mix shift
Management wants digital revenue above 50% of total in 2026, and digital revenue grew in Q4 2025. That's the goalpost. The snapshot does not yet show enough evidence that the mix shift has solved the revenue problem.
If digital grows but total revenue still falls, you are owning a better mix inside a smaller business.
An 8.3% revenue drop on a $2.3B base plus $1.1B in long-term debt leaves very little room for a slow turnaround.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
digital mix
the 50% revenue threshold
Management wants digital revenue above 50% of total in 2026. If they get there while overall sales stabilize, the story changes. If they get there and revenue still falls, it does not.
margin
1.41% operating margin
That is the number that mattered in the latest update. Small improvements look dramatic when margins are this thin. You want durability, not one cleaner quarter.
deal watch
jan 26, 2026 letter of intent
A strategic acquisition may be coming, backed by a third-party funding commitment. Without disclosed terms, you are watching optionality, not certainty.
street view
the $10 target is one opinion
Rosenblatt initiated with a Buy and a $10 target in Feb 2026. That's useful color, not broad consensus. One optimistic analyst does not fix a challenged business model.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
25 / 100
in human-speak, analysts do not have a clean read on what the next few quarters should look like.
risk rank
5
this is safer than only 5% of stocks in the data set. you are getting paid in uncertainty, not stability.
beta
1.4
when the market moves, this stock has tended to move more. translation: not a place to hide.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for TDAY is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$5
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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