News (NASDAQ:NWS) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.11 EPS

News (NASDAQ:NWS) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.11, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. News had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 6.12%.

Here are the key takeaways from News’ conference call:

• Record profitability and cash generation: Fiscal Q4 revenue rose 11% to $2.3 billion and total segment EBITDA increased 31% to $423 million, while full-year free cash flow climbed 42% to $811 million.
• Core growth engines remained strong. Dow Jones EBITDA grew 20%, Digital Real Estate Services EBITDA surged 46%, and HarperCollins revenue increased 15%; management also reiterated its path toward $1 billion of Dow Jones EBITDA by fiscal 2030.
• News Corp repurchased $643 million of shares in fiscal 2026, more than four times the prior year’s amount, and said its strong balance sheet and cash flow provide flexibility for continued capital returns.
• AI licensing is expanding: Management said the Meta and OpenAI partnerships are contributing to the business, with additional horizontal and industry-specific deals in the pipeline, while litigation continues against companies accused of using News Corp content without authorization.
• Management flagged ongoing risks from Middle East developments, higher mortgage rates and challenging housing conditions, as well as incremental costs for the California Post rollout and a difficult first-quarter comparison in News Media.

News Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NWS traded up $0.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $33.13. 1,723,433 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,107,615. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.48 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $30.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.26. News has a 1 year low of $25.49 and a 1 year high of $35.58.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. L1 Capital Pty Ltd bought a new position in News in the 3rd quarter worth $117,040,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of News by 2,991.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,947,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,691,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,066 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of News during the fourth quarter valued at about $17,701,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in News by 100.5% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,047,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,192,000 after buying an additional 525,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Burkehill Global Management LP bought a new position in News in the third quarter worth about $13,820,000. 14.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of News from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of News from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

News Company Profile

News Corporation (NASDAQ: NWS) is a global media and information services company engaged in news and digital real estate, book publishing and other media businesses. The company’s operations include print and digital newsbrands, business and financial information services, consumer platforms for property listings, and a major book publishing arm. Through its subsidiaries and brands, News Corp produces news content, market and financial reporting, online real-estate marketplaces and trade and consumer publishing products.

Key areas of activity include news and information, where the company publishes national and regional newspapers and operates business information services; book publishing through a well-known global publisher; and property-related digital businesses that operate online marketplaces for real estate listings.