Summary
Zeta Global closed FY2025 Q3 with revenue of $337.17 million, up 25.7% from the prior-year quarter. Year-to-date revenue reached $910.03 million, up 31.7%. The press release frames the quarter around 28% year-over-year growth when excluding political candidate and LiveIntent revenue, which management called an acceleration from the second quarter. Excluding those two items, fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 revenue growth guidance is 23% to 24% and 26%, respectively.
GAAP profitability remains mixed. Operating income was $8.75 million, swinging to a profit from an operating loss of $12.38 million in the prior-year quarter. Net loss was $3.63 million, narrowed from a net loss of $17.38 million. Diluted EPS was -$0.02, improved from -$0.09. Operating margin improved to 2.6%. On a non-GAAP basis, adjusted EBITDA was $78.1 million, up from $53.6 million, and adjusted EBITDA margin was 23.2%, up from 20.0%. Operating cash flow was $57.92 million, up 68.4% from the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow was $47 million, up 83%, with record free cash flow margin of 14%. Capital expenditures were $5.47 million, up 11.9%. Deferred revenue, current portion only, was $4.03 million, up 12.5%.
Customer metrics point to a larger and more productive base. Scaled customers rose 20% to 572 as of September 30, 2025, compared with 475 a year earlier. Super-scaled customers reached 180, up 12 customers quarter over quarter and 25% year over year. Scaled customer ARPU increased 4% to $579 thousand, while super-scaled customer ARPU rose 1% to $1.6 million. Direct platform revenue represented 75% of revenue in the first nine months of 2025, up from 68% in the same period of 2024, as integrated platform revenue fell to 25% from 32%.
Management raised fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 guidance and set initial full-year 2026 targets. For the fourth quarter, revenue is guided to $363 million to $366 million, adjusted EBITDA to $89.7 million to $90.5 million, and free cash flow to $48.5 million. For full-year 2025, revenue guidance is $1,273 million to $1,276 million, adjusted EBITDA $273.2 million to $274.1 million, and free cash flow $156.9 million to $157.9 million. The full-year 2025 revenue outlook represents 27% growth, adjusted EBITDA growth of 42%, and free cash flow growth of 70% to 71%. Initial full-year 2026 guidance calls for adjusted EBITDA of $354 million and free cash flow of $209 million, and assumes $15 million of political candidate revenue. Management describes the 2026 outlook as a sixth straight year of revenue growth over 20% with free cash flow margin expansion.
The Marigold enterprise software acquisition is a central strategic item. Zeta agreed on September 27, 2025 to acquire the business for total consideration of up to $325.0 million, including $100.0 million in cash, $100.0 million in Class A stock, and a seller note of up to $125.0 million. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2025, and updated guidance excludes any contribution from Marigold. Integration, closing timing, and financing mix are risks investors will track. Other risks listed in the filing include macro uncertainty, inflation, tariffs, interest rates, potential recession, customer retention, AI execution, data privacy and security, and reliance on third-party data centers. The board authorized a new $200 million stock repurchase and withholding program on July 23, 2025 through December 31, 2027; as of September 30, 2025, $199 million remained available.
Forecast
Reported figures
GAAP, from SEC filings| Metric | Q3 FY2025 | Q2 FY2025 | QoQ | Q3 FY2024 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $337.2M | $308.4M | +9.3% | $268.3M | +25.7% |
| Gross profit | $203.9M | $191.5M | +6.5% | $162.6M | +25.4% |
| Gross margin | 60.5% | 62.1% | -1.6 pp | 60.6% | -0.1 pp |
| Research & development | $29.8M | $30.6M | -2.5% | $22.8M | +30.7% |
| Sales & marketing | $85.3M | $86.4M | -1.2% | $84.5M | +0.9% |
| General & administrative | $56.4M | $62.2M | -9.3% | $50.5M | +11.7% |
| Operating income (loss) | $8.8M | -$5.1M | +271.4% | -$12.4M | +170.7% |
| Operating margin | 2.6% | -1.7% | +4.3 pp | -4.6% | +7.2 pp |
| Net income (loss) | -$3.6M | -$12.8M | +71.6% | -$17.4M | +79.1% |
| Net margin | -1.1% | -4.2% | +3.1 pp | -6.5% | +5.4 pp |
| Diluted EPS | -$0.02 | -$0.06 | +$0.04 | -$0.09 | +$0.07 |
| Customers | 180 | 168 | +7.1% | 144 | +25.0% |
Risks
Zeta's proposed acquisition of the Marigold Business for up to $325.0 million, including $100.0 million cash, $100.0 million Class A Common Stock and a seller note of up to $125.0 million, carries integration, dilution and debt risks. The filing notes anticipated benefits may not be realized and management attention may be diverted from other business concerns.
Customer disputes, non-payment or reduced spend could force write-offs, and sequential liability contracts with marketing agencies may require Zeta to seek payment solely from the agency's customer. The filing states bad debt may exceed reserves and that Zeta may still owe for purchased inventory even if customers do not pay, with risks heightened during economic downturns or due to tariffs.
Zeta conducts significant technology and product development in India and relies on expected cost savings from that concentration. Risks include difficulty hiring and retaining engineering and management resources due to competition and wage inflation, weaker intellectual property and confidentiality protections, and currency or tax compliance changes that could increase expenses.
MD&A highlights slower economic growth, potential recession, inflation risk and evolving tariffs and global trade policies as sources of uncertainty. While tariffs have not materially impacted costs to date, they may increase costs and adversely impact Zeta's operations and customers' businesses.
Other expenses, net increased 311% to $11.7 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2025 compared with the prior-year quarter, primarily driven by a fair value change of acquisition-related liabilities. This non-cash remeasurement can cause period-to-period volatility in reported results.
SaaS KPIs
All quarters →Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA margin
Free Cash Flow
Scaled Customer ARPU
Scaled Customers
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 Q3 FY2025 (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.