Fluent (NASDAQ:FLNT) Announces Earnings Results

Key Points

• Fluent beat quarterly estimates: EPS was a loss of $0.08 versus the expected loss of $0.09, while revenue of $53.6 million topped the $50.1 million consensus.
• Commerce Media Solutions continued to drive growth, doubling year over year to $37.5 million (70% of revenue). Gross profit rose 41%, and adjusted EBITDA nearly reached break-even.
• Management expects continued growth and positive adjusted EBITDA in Q4, but noted that a one-time contract renegotiation boosted CMS gross margin and that margin is expected to settle in the high-20% range.

Fluent (NASDAQ:FLNT - Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.01, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $53.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $50.08 million. Fluent had a negative return on equity of 155.09% and a negative net margin of 11.48%.

Here are the key takeaways from Fluent's conference call:

• Commerce Media Solutions (CMS) continued to scale rapidly, doubling year over year to $37.5 million, or 70% of revenue, and reaching an annual revenue run rate above $145 million.
• Revenue from continuing businesses rose 29%, accelerating from 25% in Q2; total consolidated revenue increased 14% to $53.6 million, marking a second consecutive quarter of growth on the continuing-business basis.
• Profitability improved: gross profit increased 41% to $15.3 million, adjusted EBITDA was nearly break-even versus a $3.4 million loss a year earlier, and year-to-date operating cash flow was positive $2.8 million.
• Management expects double-digit revenue growth in Q4 and for full-year 2026 continuing businesses, positive Q4 adjusted EBITDA, and double-digit consolidated revenue growth in 2027. CMS growth is expected to remain high double digits in Q4, though moderate from Q3 as the partner mix diversifies.
• Q3 CMS gross margin benefited from a partner contract renegotiation that management said will not recur; it expects CMS gross margin to settle in the high-20% range. Fluent reported $11.4 million in cash against $31.5 million in short-term debt.

Fluent Trading Down 4.0%

Shares of Fluent stock traded down $0.14 on Thursday, hitting $3.32. The stock had a trading volume of 79,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 60,056. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3.12 and a 200 day moving average of $3.27. Fluent has a twelve month low of $1.70 and a twelve month high of $4.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.95 million, a P/E ratio of -4.31 and a beta of 0.67.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $4.50 price target on shares of Fluent and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $5.50 price target (up from $5.00) on shares of Fluent in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $5.00.

Insider Activity at Fluent

In other Fluent news, Director David Graff sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.00, for a total transaction of $75,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 95,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at $286,314. The trade was a 20.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Global Value Investment Corp. purchased 12,376 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $3.38 per share, with a total value of $41,830.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 3,229,627 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,916,139.26. This trade represents a 0.38% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 27,575 shares of company stock worth $92,357 and sold 28,830 shares worth $89,764. 38.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Fluent

Fluent, Inc. is a digital marketing and advertising technology company that helps brands and agencies acquire, engage and retain customers. Its services are designed to support performance marketing campaigns across digital channels, using audience data, targeting tools and campaign optimization capabilities. The company provides solutions for programmatic advertising, customer acquisition, lead generation and audience engagement. Fluent's offerings are intended to help advertisers reach relevant consumers, manage campaigns across multiple channels and measure marketing outcomes.

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.