Newspaper and digital media company The New York Times (NYSE: NYT) met Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q3 2026, with revenue up 9.7% year on year to $768.5 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.68 per share was 5.2% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Revenue growth

Reviewing a company’s long-term revenue performance reveals insights into its quality. Any business can deliver a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. The New York Times’s revenue grew at a weak 8.9% annualized rate over the last five years, falling short of the consumer discretionary sector benchmark.

Long-term growth matters most, but within consumer discretionary, a longer historical view may miss a company riding a successful new product or trend. The New York Times’s annualized revenue growth of 9.6% over the last two years aligns with its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was consistently weak.

Subscriber numbers offer more detail on the company’s revenue dynamics, with the total reaching 13.22 million in the latest quarter. Over the last two years, The New York Times’s subscribers averaged 12.2% year-on-year growth. Subscriber growth outpaced revenue growth during the same period, indicating that the company’s monetization has fallen.

This quarter, The New York Times grew its revenue by 9.7% year on year, and its $768.5 million in revenue was in line with Wall Street’s consensus estimates.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 7.3% over the next 12 months, according to S&P, a slight deceleration versus the last two years. This projection is underwhelming and indicates its products and services will see some demand headwinds.

Operating margin

Operating margin is an important measure of profitability as it shows the portion of revenue left after accounting for all core expenses, from the cost of goods sold to advertising and wages. It’s also useful for comparing profitability across companies with different levels of debt and tax rates because it excludes interest and taxes.

The New York Times’s operating margin has risen over the last 12 months and averaged 15.7% over the last two years. The company’s improved efficiency is a positive, but its suboptimal cost structure means profitability remains inadequate for a consumer discretionary business.

This quarter, The New York Times generated an operating margin of 15.9%, in line with the same quarter last year. This indicates the company’s overall cost structure has been relatively stable.

Earnings per share

Revenue trends explain a company’s historical growth, but the long-term change in earnings per share, or EPS, points to the profitability of that growth. For example, a company could inflate its revenue through excessive spending on advertising and promotions.

The New York Times’s EPS grew at an 18.1% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. On the positive side, this outpaced its 8.9% annualized revenue growth, indicating that the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.

In Q3, The New York Times reported adjusted EPS of $0.68, up from $0.59 in the same quarter last year. This result beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 5.2%. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects The New York Times’s full-year EPS to grow 5.8% from $2.87 to $3.04, according to S&P.

Key takeaways from The New York Times’s Q3 results

An EPS beat against analysts’ consensus estimates made this a solid quarter for The New York Times. Shares rose 4% to $69.80 immediately after the report.

Is The New York Times a buy at its current price? The latest quarter matters, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation when deciding if the stock is a buy. Read more in our full research report here (it’s free).