Stagwell (NASDAQ:STGW) Announces Earnings Results

Stagwell (NASDAQ:STGW) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.01), Briefing.com reports. Stagwell had a net margin of 1.00% and a return on equity of 22.61%. The company had revenue of $704.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $700.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.12 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Stagwell updated its FY 2026 guidance to 0.980-1.120 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Stagwell’s conference call:

• Stagwell reported a record quarter of net new business at $141M (last 12 months $486M) and signed its first five‑year, nearly $60M government contract, with a government pipeline now worth “hundreds of millions.”
• Its Digital Transformation / enterprise AI push (The Machine, SATS, Search+) shows early traction with $12M booked toward a $25M first sales goal, multiple active engagements and partnerships with Palantir, Google, Adobe and others.
• First‑quarter results beat the internal plan: revenue +8% to $704M, net revenue +4% to $585M, Adjusted EBITDA +9% to $89.7M (15.3% margin), and Adjusted EPS up 31% to $0.17 largely aided by ~7.3M shares repurchased; management reiterated full‑year guidance (net revenue +8–12%, Adj. EBITDA $475–525M).
• Cash and balance‑sheet metrics improved: operating cash flow up $34M vs. prior year, free cash flow target $250M–$300M, net leverage down to 3.11x aiming for mid‑2s by year‑end, and deferred acquisition payments shrinking toward negligible.
• Near‑term risks include international weakness (strong dollar and Middle East tourism/tech slowdowns) and a second‑half growth acceleration that is partly contingent on a political “supercycle” and closing several large contracts.

Stagwell Stock Performance

Shares of STGW traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $6.36. 1,670,087 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,832,271. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.58. Stagwell has a 52-week low of $4.03 and a 52-week high of $7.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 79.44 and a beta of 1.52.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stagwell

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Stagwell by 4.6% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 21,034,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,425,000 after acquiring an additional 920,431 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Stagwell by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,111,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,107,000 after purchasing an additional 869,562 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Stagwell by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,851,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,052,000 after buying an additional 277,637 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Stagwell by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,676,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,088,000 after buying an additional 939,888 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in Stagwell by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,299,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,243,000 after buying an additional 73,817 shares during the period. 35.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. B. Riley Financial reduced their price target on shares of Stagwell from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stagwell from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Stagwell in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Stagwell from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Stagwell from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.96.

Key Stagwell News

Here are the key news stories impacting Stagwell this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted results and revenue growth — Stagwell reported Q1 revenue of ~$704M (up ~8% YoY), adjusted EPS of $0.17 (up ~31% YoY) and adjusted EBITDA of $90M (up 9%), showing improved operating performance. Stagwell Inc. (Nasdaq: STGW) Reports Results for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Strong commercial traction — record net new business of $141M in Q1 and LTM net new business of $486M, supporting revenue runoff and future growth. Q1 results and net new business
• Positive Sentiment: Digital transformation growth — digital transformation net revenue was $97M (+9% YoY) with a two‑year growth stack of ~26%, highlighting higher‑margin, strategic revenue growth. Digital transformation metrics
• Positive Sentiment: Product/tech integration move — Stagwell announced a unified technology infrastructure intended to improve service delivery and margins, which may support longer‑term efficiency and cross‑sell. Stagwell Announces Unified Technology Infrastructure
• Neutral Sentiment: FY26 guidance reiterated — management set FY26 EPS guidance of $0.98–$1.12 (consensus ~$1.01), and reiterated revenue/EBITDA targets and free cash flow conversion goals; guidance is broadly in line with Street expectations but leaves room for range‑driven volatility. FY26 guidance and slide deck
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings miss vs. some estimates — reported EPS of $0.17 missed the Zacks/consensus figure of $0.18 by $0.01, prompting near‑term selling pressure among precision‑focused traders. Stagwell Misses Q1 Earnings Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: GAAP loss and mixed headlines — the company reported a GAAP net loss of ~$13M and some outlets framed the quarter as a revenue or earnings miss, creating headline risk despite positive adjusted metrics. Stagwell earnings in-line but revenue misses estimates

Stagwell Company Profile

Stagwell Inc is a modern marketing and communications network that partners with global organizations to drive brand growth through data-driven insights and creative solutions. The company operates a diversified portfolio of specialized agencies and technology platforms, offering services that span digital marketing, advertising, public relations, consumer and market research, social media strategy, and commerce consulting. By integrating research, creative, media, and technology under a unified network, Stagwell aims to deliver end-to-end marketing solutions tailored to the evolving needs of clients in sectors such as technology, healthcare, consumer goods, and financial services.

Founded in 2015 by long-time political strategist and pollster Mark Penn, Stagwell has expanded organically and through strategic acquisitions to build capabilities across the marketing value chain.