Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.14 EPS

Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The information services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.14), Briefing.com reports. Criteo had a net margin of 5.60% and a return on equity of 14.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.31 EPS.

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

• Criteo’s Q3 Contribution ex-TAC fell 15% at constant currency to $240 million. Performance media remained pressured by lower spending from several large enterprise clients, while retail media results included $20 million of previously disclosed client scope reductions.
• Full-year guidance is unchanged, with 2026 Contribution ex-TAC expected to decline 10%–12% at constant currency; Q4 is expected to be down 9%–11%. Management said it is taking a cautious approach and has not included an immediate benefit from sales initiatives in its 2026 outlook.
• Criteo reported growing traction in newer channels: CTV campaigns are expanding, with the company on track to double its Q3 CTV run rate in Q4, while social media spend and campaigns each grew about 20% year over year. New-business spend rose 13% in Q3, and management expects recently signed clients to begin ramping in Q4 and reach full run rate in the first half of 2027.
• Excluding the previously announced client scope reductions, retail media Contribution ex-TAC grew 10% across the underlying client base, with media spend up 22%. Adjusted EBITDA of $65 million exceeded plan, and the company ended September with $275 million in cash and no long-term debt.

Criteo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CRTO traded up $0.47 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $15.64. 494,649 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 420,897. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.05. Criteo has a 1 year low of $13.95 and a 1 year high of $25.29. The company has a market cap of $766.36 million, a PE ratio of 7.94 and a beta of 0.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Huber Research cut Criteo from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Benchmark dropped their price objective on Criteo from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research raised Criteo from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Criteo in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Criteo from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $35.00 to $20.50 in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Criteo news, CFO Sarah Glickman sold 6,285 shares of Criteo stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total transaction of $108,290.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 424,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,316,064.76. The trade was a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Ryan Damon sold 6,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total transaction of $106,446.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 167,765 shares in the company, valued at $2,890,590.95. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,877 shares of company stock worth $531,717. Insiders own 1.52% of the company’s stock.

Criteo Company Profile

Criteo SA (NASDAQ: CRTO) is a global commerce media and advertising technology company headquartered in Paris, France. The company helps brands, retailers and other businesses use commerce data and artificial intelligence to reach consumers, build customer relationships and measure advertising performance across digital channels.

Criteo’s offerings include retail media solutions, which enable retailers and marketplace operators to provide sponsored product listings and other advertising placements, as well as performance media tools for campaigns across websites, mobile applications and the open internet.