NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--November 06, 2025--
BuzzFeed, Inc. ("BuzzFeed," the "Company," "we," or "our") (Nasdaq: BZFD) today announced its financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2025.
"Q3 was a challenging quarter, but we continued to advance our core strategy," said Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeed Founder and CEO. "We're growing direct visits and deepening our relationship with Gen Z and Millennial audiences, which gives us more control and more room to innovate. I'm spending more of my time in the lab as we build new products for this direct audience, and look forward to sharing more next quarter."
"As we move into Q4, we expect a seasonal step-up from Q3. We're focused on capturing that demand and managing the business carefully to finish the year in a stable position," said Matt Omer, BuzzFeed CFO.
Third Quarter 2025 Financial and Operational Highlights for Continuing Operations(1)
-- Total revenue was $46.3 million, compared to $55.6 million in Q3 2024, a
decrease of 17% year-over-year.
-- Advertising revenue declined to $22.2 million, compared to $24.8
million in Q3 2024, reflecting an 11% drop.
-- Content revenue declined to $7.2 million, compared to $10.7
million in Q3 2024, reflecting a 33% decrease.
-- Commerce and other revenue declined to $17.0 million, compared to
$20.1 million in Q3 2024, reflecting a 15% drop.
-- Net loss from continuing operations was $7.4 million, compared to net
income from continuing operations of $2.5 million in Q3 2024.
-- Adjusted EBITDA2 was $0.8 million, compared to $8.1 million in Q3 2024.
-- Total U.S. Time Spent3 across all BuzzFeed, Inc. properties was 68.5
million hours, compared to 80.3 million hours in Q3 2024. This decline
was largely expected as Q3 2024 saw elevated news consumption during the
presidential election cycle.
Business and Content Highlights
-- Traffic Diversification:
-- 63% of BuzzFeed.com traffic now comes from direct visits, internal
referrals, and app activity, up from 61% in Q2, reinforcing
reduced platform dependency.
-- HuffPost homepage pageviews and referrals now account for 75% of
total HuffPost.com traffic, up from 70% a year ago.
-- Leader in Audience & Time Spent:
-- BuzzFeed, Inc. remained #1 among Gen Z and Millennials in its
competitive set4 with 10.7 million hours of Time Spent with this
audience in Q3, up 25% from Q2.
-- BuzzFeed.com remained the #1 brand in the competitive set in Q3,
generating 37.2 million hours of US Time Spent, growing 4%
year-over-year.
-- Among Gen Z and Millennial audiences, the flagship BuzzFeed brand
was up 6% from Q2.
Updated Full Year 2025 Financial Outlook
-- Revenue expected in the range of $185 million to $195 million. -- Adjusted EBITDA expected in the range of break-even to $10 million.
These statements are forward-looking and actual results may differ materially as a result of many factors. Refer to "Forward-Looking Statements" below for information on factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements.
Refer to "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below for a description of how Adjusted EBITDA is calculated. While Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure, we have not provided guidance for the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure -- net income (loss) from continuing operations -- due to the inherent difficulty in forecasting and quantifying certain amounts that are necessary to forecast such a measure. Accordingly, a reconciliation of non-GAAP guidance for Adjusted EBITDA to the corresponding GAAP measure is not available.
(1) The historical financial results of Complex Networks and First We Feast
have been reflected as discontinued operations in our condensed
consolidated financial statements. Amounts presented throughout this
earnings release are on a continuing operations basis.
(2) As used throughout, Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure.
Refer to "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below for a description of how it
is calculated and the tables at the back of this earnings release for a
reconciliation of our GAAP and non-GAAP financial results.
(3) Refer to the definition of "Time Spent" below.
(4) Competitive set includes Condé Nast Digital, Vox Media, People,
Inc., and Bustle Digital Group.
Quarterly Conference Call
BuzzFeed's management team will hold a conference call to discuss our third quarter 2025 results today, November 6, at 5:00 PM ET. The call will be available via webcast at investors.buzzfeed.com under the heading News and Events, and parties interested in participating must register at the same location. While it is not required, it is recommended you join 5 minutes prior to the event start time. A replay of the call will be made available at the same URL.
We have used, and intend to continue to use, the Investor Relations section of our website at investors.buzzfeed.com as a means of disclosing material nonpublic information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.
Definitions
BuzzFeed reports revenues across three primary business lines: Advertising, Content, and Commerce and other. The definition of "Time Spent" is also set forth below.
-- Advertising revenues are primarily generated from advertisers, both
programmatically and directly, for ads distributed against our editorial
and news content, including display, pre-roll, and mid-roll video
products. We distribute these ad products across our owned and operated
sites as well as third-party platforms, primarily YouTube and Apple News.
-- Content revenues are primarily generated from clients for custom assets,
including both long-form and short-form content, from branded quizzes to
Instagram takeovers to sponsored content. Studio generally includes
revenue from films, content licensing, TV projects, and other projects
inspired by BuzzFeed IP.
-- Commerce and other revenues consist primarily of affiliate commissions
earned on transactions initiated from our editorial shopping content.
Revenues from our product licensing businesses are also included here.
-- Time Spent captures the time audiences spend engaging with our content
across our owned and operated sites, as well as YouTube and Apple News,
as measured by Comscore. This metric excludes time spent with our content
on platforms for which we have minimal advertising capabilities that
contribute to our advertising revenues, including Instagram, TikTok,
Facebook, Snapchat, and X (formerly Twitter). There are inherent
challenges in measuring the total actual number of hours spent with our
content across all platforms; however, we consider the data reported by
Comscore to represent industry-standard estimates of the time actually
spent on our largest distribution platforms with our most significant
monetization opportunities.
About BuzzFeed, Inc.
BuzzFeed, Inc. is home to the best of the Internet. Across entertainment, news, food, pop culture, and commerce, our brands drive conversation and inspire what audiences watch, read, and buy now -- and into the future. Born on the Internet in 2006, BuzzFeed is committed to making it better: providing trusted, quality, brand-safe news and entertainment to hundreds of millions of people; making content on the Internet more inclusive, empathetic, and creative; and inspiring our audience to live better lives.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin are non-GAAP financial measures and represent key metrics used by management and our board of directors to measure the operational strength and performance of our business, to establish budgets, and to develop operational goals for managing our business. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net (loss) income from continuing operations, excluding the impact of net income attributable to noncontrolling interests, income tax (benefit) provision, interest expense, net, other expense (income), net, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, change in fair value of warrant liabilities, restructuring costs, transaction-related costs, and other non-cash and non-recurring items that management believes are not indicative of ongoing operations. Adjusted EBITDA margin is calculated by dividing Adjusted EBITDA by revenue for the same period.
We believe Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin are relevant and useful information for investors because they allow investors to view performance in a manner similar to the method used by our management. There are limitations to the use of Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin and our Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate non-GAAP financial measures differently than we do, limiting the usefulness of those measures for comparative purposes.
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin should not be considered a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable financial results as determined in accordance with GAAP are included at the end of this press release following the accompanying financial data.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our management team's expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions, or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts (including our outlook for 2025), or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words "affect," "anticipate," "believe," "can," "contemplate," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "might," "plan," "possible," "potential," "predict," "project," "seek," "should," "target," "will," "would," and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: (1) macroeconomic factors including: adverse economic conditions in the United States and globally, including the potential onset of recession; actual or potential government shutdowns or failure to raise the U.S. federal debt ceiling; current global supply chain disruptions; the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and between Russia and Ukraine and any related sanctions and geopolitical tensions, and further escalation of trade tensions between the U.S. and its trading partners; tariffs; the inflationary environment; and the competitive labor market; (2) developments relating to our competitors and the digital media industry, including overall demand of advertising in the markets in which we operate; (3) demand for our products and services or changes in traffic or engagement with our brands and content; (4) changes in the business and competitive environment in which we and our current and prospective partners and advertisers operate; (5) our future capital requirements, including, but not limited to, our ability to obtain additional capital in the future, any restrictions imposed by, or commitments under, agreements governing any future indebtedness, and any restrictions on our ability to access our cash and cash equivalents; (6) developments in the law and government regulation, including, but not limited to, revised foreign content and ownership regulations, and the outcomes of legal proceedings, regulatory disputes, or governmental investigations to which we are subject; (7) the benefits of our restructuring; (8) our success divesting of companies, assets, or brands we sell, or in integrating and supporting the companies we acquire; (9) our success in launching new products or platforms, including any new social media platform; (10) technological developments including artificial intelligence; (11) our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, officers, other key employees or directors; (12) use of content creators and on-camera talent and relationships with third parties managing certain of our branded operations outside of the United States; (13) the security of our information technology systems or data; (14) disruption in our service, or by our failure to timely and effectively scale and adapt our existing technology and infrastructure; (15) our ability to maintain the listing of our Class A common stock and warrants on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC; and (16) those factors described under the sections entitled "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual and quarterly filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that we consider immaterial or which are unknown. It is not possible to predict or identify all such risks. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
BUZZFEED, INC.
Financial Highlights
(Unaudited, dollars in thousands)
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
----------------------- -----------------------
2025 2024 % Change 2025 2024 % Change
----------- ---------- ---------- ------------ --------- ----------
Advertising $22,150 $ 24,804 (11)% $ 66,126 $ 68,936 (4)%
Content 7,207 10,704 (33)% 22,330 24,424 (9)%
Commerce and
other 16,960 20,060 (15)% 40,276 40,332 (0)%
------ --------- ---- ------- ------- --- ---
Total
revenue $46,317 $ 55,568 (17)% $128,732 $133,692 (4)%
(Loss)
income from
continuing
operations $(5,986) $ 1,573 NM $(23,194) $(27,484) 16%
Net (loss)
income from
continuing
operations $(7,426) $ 2,512 NM $(30,514) $(29,812) (2)%
Adjusted
EBITDA $ 753 $ 8,055 (91)% $ (3,157) $ (5,481) 42%
NM: percentage is not meaningful
BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited, dollars and shares in thousands, except per share amounts)
September 30, 2025
(Unaudited) December 31, 2024
----------------------------- ---------------------
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash
equivalents $ 34,292 $ 38,648
Accounts
receivable (net
of allowance for
doubtful accounts
of $785 as at
September 30,
2025 and $1,039
as at December
31, 2024) 33,819 48,944
Prepaid expenses
and other current
assets 14,737 13,294
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total current assets 82,848 100,886
Property and
equipment, net 4,961 6,195
Right-of-use
assets 26,956 28,562
Capitalized
software costs,
net 24,213 22,653
Intangible assets,
net 11,774 11,751
Goodwill 43,304 43,304
Prepaid expenses
and other assets 17,155 8,047
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total assets $ 211,211 $ 221,398
=== =================== === ==============
Liabilities and
Stockholders'
Equity
Current liabilities
Accounts payable $ 18,681 $ 14,251
Accrued expenses 9,774 18,881
Deferred revenue 6,274 555
Accrued
compensation 11,853 11,668
Current lease
liabilities 15,851 22,084
Current debt 26,117 25,518
Other current
liabilities 4,532 3,879
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total current
liabilities 93,082 96,836
Noncurrent lease
liabilities 16,298 15,138
Debt 24,293 -
Warrant
liabilities 590 1,778
Other liabilities 292 704
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total liabilities 134,555 114,456
Commitments and
contingencies
Stockholders' equity
Class A Common
stock, $0.0001
par value;
700,000 shares
authorized;
37,691 and 37,025
shares issued;
35,864 and 37,025
outstanding at
September 30,
2025 and December
31, 2024,
respectively 3 3
Class B Common
stock, $0.0001
par value; 20,000
shares
authorized; 1,343
and 1,343 shares
issued and
outstanding at
September 30,
2025 and December
31, 2024,
respectively 1 1
Treasury stock, at
cost, 1,827 and 0
shares at
September 30,
2025 and December
31, 2024,
respectively (3,332) -
Additional paid-in
capital 734,569 730,369
Accumulated
deficit (652,790) (621,864)
Accumulated other
comprehensive
loss (2,585) (3,735)
--- ------------------- --------------
Total BuzzFeed, Inc.
stockholders'
equity 75,866 104,774
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Noncontrolling
interests 790 2,168
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total stockholders'
equity 76,656 106,942
--- ------------------- --- --------------
Total liabilities and
stockholders'
equity $ 211,211 $ 221,398
=== =================== === ==============
BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(Unaudited, dollars and shares in thousands, except per share amounts)
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
------------------------ -------------------------
2025 2024 2025 2024
----------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Revenue $46,317 $55,568 $128,732 $133,692
Costs and expenses
Cost of
revenue,
excluding
depreciation
and
amortization 29,582 28,278 81,061 77,150
Sales and
marketing 3,944 3,829 12,444 15,946
General and
administrative 12,732 14,698 37,778 44,999
Research and
development 2,527 2,581 8,416 8,532
Depreciation
and
amortization 3,518 4,609 12,227 14,549
------ ------ ------- -------
Total costs and
expenses 52,303 53,995 151,926 161,176
------ ------ ------- -------
(Loss) income from
continuing
operations (5,986) 1,573 (23,194) (27,484)
Other (expense)
income, net (579) 2,226 (4,361) 3,838
Interest
expense, net (1,412) (1,484) (4,079) (5,188)
Change in fair
value of
warrant
liabilities 205 87 1,187 (582)
------ ------ ------- -------
(Loss) income from
continuing
operations before
income taxes (7,772) 2,402 (30,447) (29,416)
Income tax
(benefit)
provision (346) (110) 67 396
------ ------ ------- -------
Net (loss) income
from continuing
operations (7,426) 2,512 (30,514) (29,812)
Net loss from
discontinued
operations,
net of tax - (378) - (11,196)
------ ------ ------- -------
Net (loss) income (7,426) 2,134 (30,514) (41,008)
Less: net
income
attributable
to
noncontrolling
interests 9 45 412 119
------ ------ ------- -------
Net (loss) income
attributable to
BuzzFeed, Inc. $(7,435) $ 2,089 $(30,926) $(41,127)
====== ====== ======= =======
Net (loss) income
from continuing
operations
attributable to
holders of Class A
and Class B common
stock:
Basic $(7,435) $ 2,467 $(30,926) $(29,931)
Diluted $(7,435) $ 2,467 $(30,926) $(29,931)
Net (loss) income
from continuing
operations per
Class A and Class
B common share:
Basic $ (0.20) $ 0.07 $ (0.81) $ (0.81)
Diluted $ (0.20) $ 0.06 $ (0.81) $ (0.81)
Weighted average
common shares
outstanding:
Basic 37,212 37,949 37,986 37,181
Diluted 37,212 38,608 37,986 37,181
BUZZFEED, INC.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(Unaudited, USD in thousands)
Nine Months Ended September 30,
---------------------------------------
2025 2024
--------------------- ----------------
Operating activities:
Net loss $ (30,514) $ (41,008)
Less: net loss from discontinued
operations, net of tax - 11,196
------------- ------------
Net loss from continuing
operations (30,514) (29,812)
------------- ------------
Adjustments to reconcile net
loss to net cash used in
operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization 12,227 14,549
Unrealized gain foreign
currency (81) (1,923)
Stock-based compensation 4,363 4,092
Change in fair value of
warrants (1,187) 582
Amortization of debt discount
and deferred issuance costs 6,867 1,499
Deferred income tax 121 (462)
Provision for doubtful
accounts (254) (355)
Gain on disposition of assets - (1,250)
Non-cash lease expense 13,511 13,528
Changes in operating assets
and liabilities:
Accounts receivable 15,999 33,284
Prepaid expenses and other
current assets and
prepaid expenses and
other assets (10,655) 4,628
Accounts payable 4,118 (30,639)
Accrued compensation (350) 1,140
Accrued expenses, other
current liabilities, and
other liabilities (9,580) 4,181
Lease liabilities (16,808) (16,469)
Deferred revenue 5,204 (548)
------------- ------------
Cash used in operating
activities from continuing
operations (7,019) (3,975)
Net cash used in operating
activities from discontinued
operations - (12,149)
------------- ------------
Net cash used in operating
activities (7,019) (16,124)
------------- ------------
Investing activities:
Capital expenditures (1,678) (500)
Capitalization of internal-use
software (9,636) (9,294)
Business combinations, net of
cash acquired (233) -
Proceeds from sale of asset 300 350
------------- ------------
Cash used in investing
activities from continuing
operations (11,247) (9,444)
Cash provided by investing
activities from discontinued
operations - 108,575
------------- ------------
Cash (used in) provided by
investing activities (11,247) 99,131
------------- ------------
Financing activities:
Borrowings from Term Loan 43,975 -
Borrowings from film financing
arrangements 5,342 -
Proceeds from co-financing
arrangements for feature films 2,662 -
Payment on Convertible Notes (30,000) (31,233)
Payment of consent solicitation
fees (2,089) -
Payment on Revolving Credit
Facility - (33,837)
Payment of early termination fee
for Revolving Credit Facility - (500)
Payment of Term Loan's debt
issuance costs (754) -
Repurchase of common stock (3,332) -
Proceeds from exercise of stock
options 16 1
Payment for shares withheld for
employee taxes (191) (291)
Proceeds from the issuance of
common stock in connection with
the at-the-market offering, net
of issuance costs (175) 660
Distributions to noncontrolling
interests (1,923) -
------------- ------------
Cash provided by (used in)
financing activities 13,531 (65,200)
------------- ------------
Effect of currency translation
on cash and cash equivalents 379 279
------------- ------------
Net (decrease) increase in cash
and cash equivalents (4,356) 18,086
Cash and cash equivalents at
beginning of period 38,648 35,637
------------- ------------
Cash and cash equivalents at end
of period $ 34,292 $ 53,723
============= ============
BUZZFEED, INC.
Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP
(Unaudited, USD in thousands)
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September
September 30, 30,
--------------------------- -----------------------------
2025 2024 2025 2024
------------- ------------ -------------- -------------
Net (loss) income
from continuing
operations $(7,426) $ 2,512 $(30,514) $(29,812)
Income tax (benefit)
provision (346) (110) 67 396
Interest expense,
net 1,412 1,484 4,079 5,188
Other expense
(income), net 579 (2,226) 4,361 (3,838)
Depreciation and
amortization 3,518 4,609 12,227 14,549
Stock-based
compensation 1,660 1,690 4,363 4,092
Change in fair value
of warrant
liabilities (205) (87) (1,187) 582
Restructuring(1) 1,561 -- 3,447 3,179
Transaction-related
costs(2) -- 183 -- 183
------ ---- ------ --- ------- ---- ------- ---
Adjusted EBITDA $ 753 $ 8,055 $ (3,157) $ (5,481)
====== ==== ====== === ======= === =======
Adjusted EBITDA
margin 1.6% 14.5% (2.5)% (4.1)%
Net (loss) income
from continuing
operations as a
percentage of
revenue(3) (16.0)% 4.5% (23.7)% (22.3)%
(1) We exclude restructuring expenses from our non-GAAP measures because we
believe they do not reflect expected future operating expenses, they are not
indicative of our core operating performance, and they are not meaningful in
comparison to our past operating performance.
(2) Reflects transaction-related costs and other items which are either not
representative of our underlying operations or are incremental costs that result
from an actual or contemplated transaction and include professional fees,
integration expenses, and certain costs related to integrating and converging
information technology systems.
(3) Net (loss) income from continuing operations as a percentage of revenue is
included as the most comparable GAAP measure to Adjusted EBITDA margin, which is
a Non-GAAP measure.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251106647727/en/
CONTACT: Media Contact: juliana.clifton@buzzfeed.com
Investor Relations: investors@buzzfeed.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 06, 2025 16:10 ET (21:10 GMT)
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