Summary
Zeta Global opened fiscal 2026 with revenue of $396.3 million, up 49.9% from the prior-year quarter. Growth came from a mix of new and existing customer spending, and the November 2025 acquisition of Marigold's Enterprise Business added to the total. Super-scaled customers, the accounts that generated at least $1 million on a trailing twelve-month basis, reached 189 as of March 31, 2026, up 19% from 159 a year earlier. Super-scaled customer ARPU rose 21% to $1.7 million from $1.4 million. Management tied much of the momentum to Athena by Zeta, the agentic layer launched on the platform, which drove more than 7X more agent interactions and accounted for over 60% of AI platform usage in its first week of general availability. The quarter produced a Rule of 67 result, the company's shorthand for revenue growth plus adjusted EBITDA margin.
Revenue growth again outran profit. Loss from operations was $18.8 million for the quarter, wider than the $16.1 million loss a year earlier. Operating margin was -4.8%, up from -6.1%. The net loss narrowed to $13.2 million from $21.6 million, and diluted loss per share narrowed to $0.06 from $0.10. On the non-GAAP side, adjusted EBITDA rose to $66.1 million from $46.7 million, while adjusted EBITDA margin slipped to 16.7% from 17.7%. That gap between accelerating revenue and a still-negative operating margin is the central tension in the quarter.
Cash generation held up. Operating cash flow was $49.7 million, up 42.9% from the prior-year quarter. Capital expenditures rose to $3.0 million from $2.7 million, an increase of 10.1%. Free cash flow, which Zeta defines as operating cash flow less capital expenditures and website and software development costs, adjusted for the effect of exchange rates, was $41.7 million versus $28.2 million a year earlier, and free cash flow margin was 10.5% against 10.7%. The current portion of deferred revenue was $37.4 million as of March 31, 2026, up from $6.0 million a year earlier.
Guidance moved higher for both the coming quarter and the full year. Second quarter revenue guidance is a range of $419 million to $422 million, up $4 million at the midpoint from the prior level, which represents year-over-year growth of 36% to 37%. Second quarter adjusted EBITDA guidance is $86.2 million to $86.9 million, up $1.7 million at the midpoint from $84.9 million, for an adjusted EBITDA margin of 20.4% to 20.8%. For the full fiscal year 2026, revenue guidance rose by $30 million at the midpoint to a range of $1,779 million to $1,792 million from $1,755 million, a year-over-year growth rate of 36% to 37%. Full year adjusted EBITDA guidance is $396.2 million to $398.4 million, up $6.3 million at the midpoint from $391.0 million, and full year free cash flow guidance is $234.5 million to $235.5 million, up $3.8 million at the midpoint from $231.2 million. The company also said it expects positive GAAP net income for the full year 2026.
The risks are familiar. The MD&A points to slower economic growth, the potential for a recession, inflation, tariffs and changes in global trade policy as factors that could raise costs and pressure customers. Integration of recent acquisitions, including Marigold's Enterprise Business, adds execution risk. The business leans on a relatively small set of super-scaled accounts, so the loss of a few large customers would be felt quickly. Other flagged concerns include future rules that email providers and private entities may adopt on data use and delivery, dependence on third-party data centers, the possibility of a security breach or disclosure of personal information, variable-rate borrowing costs, and heavy competition as AI reshapes marketing software.
What to watch next is Athena adoption across the customer base, whether adjusted EBITDA margin recovers as Marigold is integrated, and whether the raised second quarter guidance holds. Revenue climbed 49.9% in the quarter while the GAAP operating result stayed negative, and that combination frames both the opportunity and the risk.
Forecast
Reported figures
GAAP, from SEC filings| Metric | Q1 FY2026 | Q4 FY2025 | QoQ | Q1 FY2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $396.3M | $394.6M | +0.4% | $264.4M | +49.9% |
| Gross profit | $233.9M | $234.8M | -0.4% | $160.9M | +45.3% |
| Gross margin | 59.0% | 59.5% | -0.5 pp | 60.9% | -1.9 pp |
| Research & development | $45.0M | $30.0M | +50.0% | $26.8M | +67.7% |
| Sales & marketing | $102.4M | $93.0M | +10.2% | $75.4M | +35.9% |
| General & administrative | $73.4M | $60.4M | +21.5% | $54.0M | +35.8% |
| Operating income (loss) | -$18.8M | $17.8M | -205.6% | -$16.1M | -16.9% |
| Operating margin | -4.8% | 4.5% | -9.3 pp | -6.1% | +1.3 pp |
| Net income (loss) | -$13.2M | $6.5M | -302.6% | -$21.6M | +38.7% |
| Net margin | -3.3% | 1.7% | -5.0 pp | -8.2% | +4.8 pp |
| Diluted EPS | -$0.06 | $0.03 | -$0.09 | -$0.10 | +$0.04 |
| Customers | 189 | — | — | 159 | +18.9% |
Risks
Operating loss widened to $18.8 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2026 from $16.1 million in the prior-year quarter, even as revenue rose 49.9%. Total operating expenses grew to $415.1 million, with cost of revenues up 57.0% and research and development up 67.7%, outpacing revenue growth and compressing adjusted EBITDA margin to 16.7% from 17.7%.
MD&A states that while tariffs and changes in global trade policies have not materially impacted costs to date, they continue to cause overall economic uncertainty and may increase costs and adversely impact operations and customers' businesses. The company also flags the looming potential of increased inflation and the drag on customer spending from slower economic growth.
Revenue growth was substantially aided by the Marigold Enterprise Business acquisition, closed November 24, 2025, which contributed $55.6 million of revenue in the quarter. Acquisition-related expenses of $1.7 million were recorded and depreciation and amortization rose 33.0% to $23.5 million, primarily from higher amortization of acquired intangible assets, tying future results to successful integration and impairment assumptions.
Cost of revenues (excluding depreciation and amortization) rose 57.0% to $162.4 million, faster than the 49.9% revenue increase, driven by $47.8 million of incremental third-party media and publisher costs. Revenue mix continued to shift, with direct platform revenue at 75% and integrated platform revenue, which carries third-party revenue-share economics, at 25% for the quarter.
The company reported an accumulated deficit of $1,073.1 million as of March 31, 2026 and $197.3 million of outstanding long-term borrowings under a senior secured credit facility with restrictive covenants that limit debt incurrence, buybacks, investments and dividends. MD&A notes that capital may need to be raised in the future and that any inability to raise capital could adversely affect the business.
Growth is increasingly dependent on a small set of super-scaled customers, which increased 19% to 189 as of March 31, 2026 from 159 a year earlier, with ARPU up 21% to $1.7 million for the quarter. Loss or reduced usage by a small number of these large accounts would have an outsized effect on revenue.
Restructuring expenses increased 114.2% to $6.8 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2026 from $3.2 million in the prior-year quarter, primarily from higher employee termination costs tied to internal restructuring, indicating ongoing organizational change and execution risk. MD&A also states restructuring expenses will vary with future restructuring activities.
SaaS KPIs
All quarters →Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA margin
Free Cash Flow
Super-Scaled Customers
Super-Scaled Customer ARPU
Free Cash Flow margin
Summary, forecast, risks and KPIs are extracted from Zeta Global Holdings Corp.'s SEC filings for Q1 FY2026 (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.