New York Times (NYSE:NYT) reported a strong start to 2026, with executives pointing to continued digital subscription growth, a sharp increase in digital advertising revenue and ongoing investment in video journalism as key themes from the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
President and Chief Executive Officer Meredith Kopit Levien said the company continued to see “strong demand for the uncompromised journalism and premium lifestyle content” across its portfolio, despite a media environment in which large technology platforms continue to affect publisher traffic. She said The Times is not immune to those pressures but believes its strategy and competitive advantages position it for long-term growth.
“We have a clear strategy and enduring advantages that we believe position us well for long-term growth,” Kopit Levien said. She cited the company’s presence in large markets, its ability to produce original reporting and lifestyle content at scale, its use of technology to improve audience engagement and its multiple-revenue-stream model.
Digital subscriptions and advertising drive growth
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Will Bardeen said consolidated revenue rose 12% year over year in the first quarter. Adjusted operating profit increased approximately 27% to about $118 million, while adjusted operating profit margin expanded 200 basis points to 16.6%.
Digital-only subscription revenue grew approximately 16% to $389 million. The company added 310,000 net new digital-only subscribers in the quarter, bringing its total subscriber base to more than 13 million. Digital-only average revenue per user increased 2.4%.
Total subscription revenue grew 11.3% to approximately $517 million, above the company’s prior guidance range. Bardeen said the quarter benefited from subscribers moving from promotional offers to higher prices, as well as the impact of some price increases, including a bundle price increase discussed on the company’s prior call.
“We remain confident in the health of our subscription revenue drivers,” Bardeen said, adding that engagement remained strong across the portfolio and that the company continued to be pleased with its news-centered bundle and pricing step-up points.
Advertising also outperformed expectations. Total advertising revenue increased approximately 17% to $127 million, while digital advertising revenue rose approximately 32% to $93 million. Bardeen said the digital advertising growth was driven mainly by strong marketer demand and growth in advertising supply.
Affiliate, licensing and other revenue increased approximately 8% to $68.5 million, primarily due to higher licensing revenue.
Company emphasizes portfolio breadth
Kopit Levien said The Times benefited from operating across multiple content categories, including news, sports, games, cooking, Wirecutter and lifestyle coverage. She said the breadth of the portfolio has helped the company attract advertisers and create more places for marketers to reach engaged audiences.
In response to analyst questions about advertising, Kopit Levien said the company had benefited last year from increased ad supply, particularly in games and sports, and that benefit continued into the first quarter. She said The Times plans to keep adding supply in 2026, but “more incrementally” and across the portfolio.
She also said the company remains deliberate about ad load to preserve a consumer-first experience. “That’s kind of the magic of the model,” she said. “That’s why the ads work so well.”
Asked whether major news events such as the Iran conflict create challenges for advertising, Kopit Levien said The Times benefits from having a broad portfolio with many areas of audience engagement. She also said news itself covers a wide range of topics beyond war and politics, including culture, health and wellness, science and style.
Video remains a major investment area
Executives repeatedly highlighted video as a strategic investment. Kopit Levien said The Times aims to become a preferred brand for watching news and other content, in addition to reading and listening.
She said the company more than doubled production of reporter video in the first quarter and has increased video news clips, visual investigations and shows covering politics, culture, artificial intelligence, shopping and sports highlights.
“It is early here, but we’ve seen great engagement on our site and our apps,” Kopit Levien said. She described the company’s approach as a three-step strategy: increasing production, building engagement with current and new audiences, and then monetizing through advertising, subscriptions and potentially licensing.
Kopit Levien said reporter video can help build trust by showing the expertise and humanity behind Times journalism. She pointed to coverage of the Iran War and said short videos can either satisfy a viewer’s need for information or prompt that viewer to read longer-form reporting.
Asked about YouTube, Kopit Levien said The Times prioritizes its own destinations but recognizes that platforms such as YouTube can help build audience and awareness, particularly for longer-form shows.
Guidance points to continued growth
For the second quarter of 2026, Bardeen said the company expects:
- Digital-only subscription revenue to increase 14% to 17%.
- Total subscription revenue to increase 10% to 12%.
- Digital advertising revenue to increase in the high teens.
- Total advertising revenue to increase in the high single digits.
- Affiliate, licensing and other revenue to increase in the low single digits.
- Adjusted operating costs to increase 8% to 9%.
Bardeen said adjusted operating costs rose 9.4% in the first quarter, largely due to higher compensation and benefits expenses, including investments in video journalism. Sales and marketing costs also increased, reflecting marketing expenses and higher costs associated with advertising revenue.
Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased $0.20 to $0.61. Bardeen said the company’s first-quarter effective tax rate benefited from stock awards that settled during the period. Going forward, he said the company expects an annual effective tax rate between 25% and 26%, with some quarterly variability.
AI licensing and The Athletic discussed
During the question-and-answer portion, Kopit Levien addressed artificial intelligence licensing, including the company’s partnership with Amazon. She said The Times remains open to deals that are consistent with its long-term strategy, ensure a fair value exchange and provide control over how its content is used.
“We’ve done a partnership with Amazon because it met those conditions, and so far so good,” she said. She added that enforcing the company’s rights remains important to ensuring sustainable value exchange over time.
Kopit Levien also discussed The Athletic, though the company no longer breaks out its results separately. She said The Times is “thrilled to be in sports,” citing marketer interest, net new audience potential and the addition of highlights from some leagues, including the NFL, in the second half of last year.
Looking ahead, Bardeen said the company continues to expect 2026 to be another year of revenue growth, adjusted operating profit growth, margin expansion and strong free cash flow generation.
About New York Times (NYSE:NYT)
The New York Times Company is a publicly traded media organization best known for publishing The New York Times newspaper and operating the NYTimes.com digital platform. The company produces daily print and digital journalism covering national and international news, opinion pieces, feature stories, and multimedia content. Alongside its flagship newspaper, the firm offers a range of subscription-based services, including Times Cooking, NYT Games, podcasts and newsletters, designed to engage a broad audience of readers and advertisers.
Founded in 1851 by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones, The New York Times has built a reputation for in-depth reporting and investigative journalism.
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.
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