Summary
Yext closed fiscal 2022 with fourth quarter revenue of $100.93 million, up 9.5% from $92.19 million in the prior-year quarter. Full year revenue reached $390.58 million, up 10.1% from $354.66 million. Gross profit rose 8.2% to $76.36 million in the quarter and 9.0% to $292.28 million for the year. Gross margin slipped to 75.7% in the quarter from 76.6%, a decline of 0.9 percentage points. For the full year, gross margin was 74.8%, down 0.8 percentage points from 75.6%. The top line grew, but profitability remained under pressure.
The fourth quarter operating loss was $21.96 million, down 14.7% from a $19.14 million loss in the prior-year quarter, as the loss widened. Net loss for the quarter was $23.11 million, down 26.2% from $18.31 million, as the loss widened. Full year operating loss was $89.96 million, up 4.6% from $94.33 million, as the loss narrowed. Full year net loss was $93.26 million, up 1.5% from $94.69 million, as the loss narrowed. Diluted loss per share for the full year was $0.73, up 7.6% from a loss of $0.79, as the loss narrowed. Operating margin for the quarter was negative 21.8%, down 1.0 percentage point from negative 20.8%. Full year operating margin was negative 23.0%, up 3.6 percentage points from negative 26.6%.
Cash generation improved. Operating cash flow for the fourth quarter was $29.12 million, up 16.8% from $24.93 million. For the full year, operating cash flow was $21.85 million, up 1714.7% from $1.20 million. Capital expenditures fell 90.3% in the quarter to $1.08 million from $11.16 million, and fell 79.4% for the year to $13.42 million from $65.11 million. Deferred revenue, current portion, rose 16.5% to $223.43 million from $191.81 million. Remaining performance obligations were $404.90 million, up 15.1% from $351.80 million. Yext expects $379 million of RPO to be recognized over the next 24 months.
Operating metrics show mixed retention. Customer count increased 15% year over year to over 2,700 as of January 31, 2022. Annual recurring revenue increased 10% to $390 million, compared with $354 million as of January 31, 2021. The dollar-based net retention rate was 98% for fiscal 2022, down from 102% in fiscal 2021 and 106% in fiscal 2020. Management attributes the decline to continued challenges in retaining and expanding relationships with existing customers, including COVID-19 effects. This metric matters because much of growth depends on renewals and expansion.
Management changes and guidance are central. Howard Lerman stepped down as CEO effective March 25, 2022. Chairman Michael Walrath will succeed him. Steven Cakebread stepped down as CFO effective March 25, 2022. Darryl Bond, Executive Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer, will succeed him while continuing as CAO. Marc Ferrentino was promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer. The board and new management anticipate additional strategy and personnel changes that have not yet been determined. For the first quarter of fiscal 2023, Yext guided revenue of $96.3 million to $97.3 million and non-GAAP net loss per share of $0.08 to $0.07, assuming 131.9 million weighted-average basic shares. For the full fiscal year 2023, the company guided revenue of $403.3 million to $407.3 million and non-GAAP net loss per share of $0.19 to $0.17, assuming 134.3 million weighted-average basic shares.
Risks remain significant. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt business operations and customer spending, especially in retail, food services, and Europe. Customers may reduce, suspend, or delay technology spending, seek contract concessions such as extended billing terms, shorten contract durations, or elect not to renew. Yext also faces execution risk around sales force expansion, new product adoption, competition, and the ability to renew and expand enterprise subscriptions. The management transition adds uncertainty, and the company has not yet determined the full scope of strategic and personnel changes. The company reported operating cash flow growth and a large deferred revenue balance, but the weakening net retention rate and a fourth quarter net loss that widened year over year temper the revenue growth story.
Forecast
Reported figures
GAAP, from SEC filings| Metric | Q4 FY2022 | Q3 FY2022 | QoQ | Q4 FY2021 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $100.9M | $99.5M | +1.4% | $92.2M | +9.5% |
| Gross profit | $76.4M | $74.3M | +2.8% | $70.6M | +8.2% |
| Gross margin | 75.7% | 74.6% | +1.0 pp | 76.6% | -0.9 pp |
| Research & development | $18.0M | $18.0M | +0.1% | $14.5M | +24.1% |
| Sales & marketing | $58.2M | $58.5M | -0.6% | $57.2M | +1.7% |
| General & administrative | $22.1M | $22.1M | +0.2% | $18.0M | +22.8% |
| Total operating expenses | $98.3M | $98.6M | -0.3% | $89.7M | +9.6% |
| Operating income (loss) | -$22.0M | -$24.4M | +9.8% | -$19.1M | -14.7% |
| Operating margin | -21.8% | -24.5% | +2.7 pp | -20.8% | -1.0 pp |
| Net income (loss) | -$23.1M | -$24.9M | +7.3% | -$18.3M | -26.2% |
| Net margin | -22.9% | -25.0% | +2.1 pp | -19.9% | -3.0 pp |
| Net retention rate | 98.0% | — | — | 102.0% | -4.0 pp |
Risks
Yext's revenue growth rate was 31% for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2020, 19% for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2021, and 10% for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2022, and management expects growth in the coming year to be slower. A sustained slowdown could make it difficult to achieve profitability and may increase stock price volatility.
Dollar-based net retention rate declined to 98% for fiscal 2022 from 102% for fiscal 2021 and 106% for fiscal 2020. The filing attributes the general decline to continued challenges retaining and expanding relationships with existing customers, which has been and may continue to be negatively impacted by COVID-19.
In March 2022, CEO Howard Lerman and CFO Steven Cakebread resigned effective March 25, 2022, and Chairman Michael Walrath and Chief Accounting Officer Darryl Bond were appointed to succeed them. The Board and new management anticipate additional strategy and personnel changes that have not yet been determined, creating execution and disruption risk.
Revenue growth is substantially reliant on the sales force, and Yext has historically had difficulty recruiting and retaining a sufficient number of sales personnel, a difficulty heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent decreases in the company's stock price may also decrease retention of quota-carrying sales representatives.
The launch of Answers in October 2019 places Yext in enterprise search, where competitors have greater experience, name recognition, more established customer relationships, and larger customer bases. Competitors may also offer products at lower prices, which could pressure margins and revenue growth.
Yext depends on strategic relationships with approximately 200 third-party Knowledge Network application providers, including Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Yelp, for direct access to update customer listings. Loss of access, unfavorable renegotiation, or a provider acquiring a competitor could lead to decreased customer subscriptions.
A significant portion of revenue is dependent on third-party reseller customers whose efforts Yext does not control; these resellers may not renew, may purchase fewer licenses, may seek concessions, and in some international markets have exclusive rights. Lower demand from certain reseller customers has and may continue to result in non-renewals or fewer license purchases.
Yext recently began offering capacity-based pricing for Pages and Answers, and there is no assurance that this new pricing and distribution model will be successful. Large customers may demand greater price discounts, and changes in feature mix or competitive pressure may require price reductions or shorter contract durations.
Yext has expanded internationally and faces regulatory, economic, and political risks, including higher network service provider fees outside the U.S. that can affect gross margin. The February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine could lead to sanctions, regional instability, and adverse macroeconomic effects, while European economic weakness has already negatively impacted sales activities in Europe.
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted operations and is expected to continue to have an adverse effect, with customers in highly impacted industries such as retail and food services and certain geographies such as Europe reducing, suspending, or delaying technology spending or seeking contract concessions. Because revenue is recognized ratably, near-term changes in contracting activity may not be fully reflected until future periods.
The Credit Agreement requires Yext to maintain the year-over-year growth rate of ordinary course recurring revenue above specified rates when certain liquidity thresholds are not met and to maintain a consolidated quick ratio of at least 1.50 to 1.00 tested monthly. With revenue growth slowing, a breach could limit operating flexibility, although as of January 31, 2022 the company was in compliance.
Gross margin decreased to 74.8% for fiscal 2022 from 75.6% for fiscal 2021, and the filing states gross margin may decrease as Yext enters new international markets or introduces new products and features. Higher international network service provider fees may also affect gross margin.
Yext previously identified a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting related to processes to calculate, record and account for sales commissions as of January 31, 2021, and remediated it in fiscal 2022. The company may discover other control deficiencies in the future, and any failure could impair reporting reliability and investor confidence.
SaaS KPIs
All quarters →Customer Count
Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO)
ARR
Unearned Revenue
Summary, forecast, risks and KPIs are extracted from Yext, Inc.'s SEC filings for Q4 FY2022 (10-Q / 10-K and the 8-K earnings release); GAAP figures in the summary are checked against the reported XBRL data. They can contain errors; the filings are authoritative. Processed Oct 6, 2026.