10-Q · May 8, 2026
QuinStreet's Q3 fiscal 2026 results show robust growth, with revenues reaching $346.1 million, up 28% year-over-year, and adjusted EPS of $0.31, beating estimates by 6.9%. The company anticipates continued momentum,…
Earnings analysis · 10-K
QNST earnings analysis
Filed August 26, 2026 · Our reading of the company's report
The latest report
QuinStreet delivered a strong fiscal 2026, with revenue up 18% to $1.294 billion, operating margin rising to 2.7%, and operating cash flow reaching $131.3 million. Growth was led by Home Services, including the…
Read full summary
QuinStreet delivered a strong fiscal 2026, with revenue up 18% to $1.294 billion, operating margin rising to 2.7%, and operating cash flow reaching $131.3 million. Growth was led by Home Services, including the HomeBuddy acquisition, and higher insurance demand within Financial Services, while the company continued investing in targeted media, technology and AI/ML capabilities. The outlook is strategically positive but carries higher execution, regulatory and leverage risk following the acquisition and the addition of $70.0 million of secured debt; reported EPS also benefited materially from a one-time $60.7 million tax valuation allowance release.
Gross and operating margin
How much of each revenue dollar the business keeps.
One point per quarterly or annual filing. Both margins are shares of that report's revenue.
From revenue to operating profit
Where each $100 of revenue went in this report.
Cost of sales, operating expenses, and what remained. Figures are rounded to whole dollars.
Where revenue came from
The business segments reported by the company.
Shares of the segments disclosed in this filing, largest first.
How we read each report
Our analysis across the last few reports.
Our model's reading of each filing, not the share price or the market's reaction. Annual and quarterly reports each occupy one position.
Reported figures
- Earnings per share
- $1.4
What stood out
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Verticalized Performance Marketplace Strategy
QuinStreet describes itself as a leader in performance marketplaces and technologies for financial and home services, delivering qualified inquiries such as clicks, leads, calls, applications and customers. Its strategy emphasizes targeted media, vertical specialization, matching and analytics to optimize client outcomes and media-buying efficiency.
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Multi-Year Revenue and Margin Inflection
Fiscal 2026 revenue increased 18% to $1.294 billion from $1.094 billion in fiscal 2025 and $613.5 million in fiscal 2024. Gross margin expanded to 11.3% from 10.1% and 7.5%, while operating margin improved to 2.7% from 0.5% and negative 4.6%.
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HomeBuddy and Insurance Drive Growth
Home Services revenue rose 47% to $405.4 million, including $88.9 million contributed by the January 2026 HomeBuddy acquisition. Financial Services revenue increased 9% to $888.4 million, led by a $79.0 million increase in insurance revenue, partially offset by a $7.8 million decline in other financial services verticals.
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Profitability Strengthened
Adjusted EBITDA increased to $112.5 million in fiscal 2026 from $81.3 million in fiscal 2025 and $20.4 million in fiscal 2024. Net income rose to $81.2 million from $4.7 million and a $31.3 million loss, although fiscal 2026 included a one-time $60.7 million non-cash tax valuation allowance release.
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Cash Generation Funds Investment
Operating cash flow rose to $131.3 million from $85.0 million in fiscal 2025 and $12.0 million in fiscal 2024. Capital allocation included $10.9 million of internal software development costs, $3.4 million of capital expenditures, $105.3 million of cash paid for HomeBuddy net of cash acquired, and $31.4 million of share repurchases.
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Buybacks and Platform Expansion
The company repurchased and retired 2,308,491 shares in fiscal 2026 at an average price of $13.59 per share, while retaining approximately $25.4 million under its $40.0 million 2025 authorization. It also expanded its platform through AI and machine-learning investments and new category offerings, including health insurance.
What to watch
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Acquisition Leverage and Integration
The January 2026 HomeBuddy acquisition added leverage and integration obligations: total purchase price was $179.7 million, including $114.8 million paid at closing and $75.0 million of post-closing payments. As of June 30, 2026, the company had $70.0 million drawn on a $150.0 million secured revolving facility, and fiscal-year interest expense increased to $4.4 million from $0.4 million.
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TCPA and Performance-Marketing Regulation
Regulatory exposure has materially expanded through evolving TCPA and privacy requirements. The filing states that TCPA violations can carry $500 per prohibited call or text under the private right of action and up to $1,500 per violation through private litigation or state authorities; the FCC’s remaining consent-revocation rules took effect April 11, 2025, while the waiver for the 'revoke-all' requirement extends to January 31, 2027.
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AI, Privacy and Cybersecurity Exposure
The filing highlights increased risk from AI-enabled cyberattacks and the company’s own use of AI/ML in products, including potential inaccurate or biased outputs, regulatory investigations and exposure of personal data. Nearly all products and services are web-based, and the company notes it has experienced past security incidents involving database access, although no incident has materially affected results to date.
Management's outlook
The 10-K does not provide quantitative forward guidance; annual outlook is generally addressed in the fiscal Q4 earnings press release and conference call.
Earlier filings 4
10-Q · February 6, 2026
QuinStreet reported Q2 revenue of $287.845M (up $5.249M YoY and +$2.0M QoQ) and GAAP diluted EPS of $0.87 driven primarily by a $48.9M tax benefit related to the release of a valuation allowance. Operating income turned…
10-Q · May 8, 2025
QuinStreet reported strong top-line growth with net revenue of $269.842M for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 (up from $168.587M a year earlier) and moved to GAAP net income of $4.416M (vs. a loss of $7.048M…
10-Q · May 9, 2024
QuinStreet, Inc. reported revenues of $168.6 million for Q3 2024, reflecting a slight decline compared to $172.7 million in Q3 2023. The company's gross margin improved to 8.5% from 9.9% in the prior year, while the…
This is our reading of a public filing, not the filing itself. Analysis can contain errors; check the source document for full context.