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Ziff Davis, Inc.

Rank #210Capital Return

ZD · Nasdaq · Communication Services

Ziff Davis, Inc. (ZD) — Rank #210 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.31) · ROE 2.1% · Piotroski F-Score 7 / 9.

As-of 2026-09-28 · CIK 0001084048 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.

About

Ziff Davis, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital media and internet company in the United States and internationally.

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It offers online resources for laboratory-based product reviews, technology news, buying guides, and research papers under the PCMag and CNET brands; Mashable for publishing technology and culture content; Spiceworks provides digital content of IT products and services; RetailMeNot, a savings destination platform; VoucherCodes; Offers.com, a coupon and deals website; and event based properties, includes BlackFriday.com, TheBlackFriday.com, BestBlackFriday.com, and DealsofAmerica.com. It also offers gaming and entertainment platforms under the IGN Entertainment and Humble Bundle brands; and information on internet connectivity under the Speedtest, Ookla, Ekahau, Downdetector, and RootMetrics brands. The company also offers digital content and information services for health and wellness consumers under the Everyday Health, DailyOM, Lose It!, Castle Connolly, and Migraine Again brands; pregnancy and parenting content under the BabyCenter, Mom 2.0, Emma's Diary, Medpage Today, and What to Expect brands. In addition, it offers PRIME Education, a medical education program for healthcare professionals; and Health eCareers, a digital portal for healthcare professionals. Further, it provides endpoint and email security, security awareness training, secure backup and file sharing, and virtual private network solutions under the IPVanish, VIPRE, Livedrive, Inspired eLearning, and SugarSync brands; and email marketing and delivery solutions, search engine optimization tools, and voice and text communication services under the Campaigner, iContact, SMTP, Kickbox, Full Contact, MOZ Pro, MOZ Local, Stat Analytics, eVoice, and Line2 brands. The company was formerly known as j2 Global, Inc. and changed its name to Ziff Davis, Inc. in October 2021.

The company was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Industry
Advertising Agencies
Sector
Communication Services
Filer Category
Large accelerated filer
Fiscal Year End
December 31

Company Snapshot

P/E and reverse DCF are the primary valuation lenses at this stage.

Market Cap

—

P/E (annual)

—

P/S (annual)

—

P/B

—

P/OCF (annual)

—

Shareholder Yield

—

Employees

3,900

Industry

Advertising Agencies

Exchange

Nasdaq

Signal Flags

3 green
Revenue growth acceleratingGrowth rate increasing year over year
Operating leverage expandingOperating income growing faster than revenue
Sequential beat (rev + EPS)Both revenue and EPS exceeded prior quarter — 2-quarter streak

Quality Profile

Profitability

1/1 pass
GP / assets
0.31
Return on equity
2.1%
Gross margin trend
PASS

Safety

1/1 pass
Balance-sheet safety
PASS
Debt / equity
0.79
Current ratio
2.16×
Net cash
$838.41M

Cash Flow

3/3 pass
Positive FCF
PASS
Cash-backed earnings
PASS
Accruals healthy
PASS
SBC / revenue
3.1%

Growth

2/2 pass
Revenue growth
3.5%
Piotroski F-Score
7 / 9
Share dilution
-7.7%

Terry Smith quality gate

Passes 2/5 Terry Smith thresholds

FCF yield, shareholder yield, and buyback activity are the primary reads at this stage.

Profitability

Gross profitability (GP / assets)

0.31

Primary signal (Novy-Marx).

Return on equity

2.1%

Gross margin

85.8%

Revenue growth (YoY)

3.5%

RPO growth (YoY)

-5.3%

Remaining performance obligations growth — RPO > revenue = forward demand building.

Gross margin improving

Margin trend vs prior year.

PASS

Operating Leverage

2022202320242025
Revenue vs COGS
Revenue vs OpEx
Op. Income vs Revenue

Growth

Revenue CAGR (3Y)

1.4%

Revenue CAGR (5Y)

4.6%

Earnings CAGR (3Y)

-9.4%

FCF CAGR (3Y)

7.7%

Anti-fragile safety

Balance-sheet safety

Composite anti-fragile check.

PASS

Debt / equity

0.79

Current ratio

2.16×

Quick ratio

2.10×

Net cash

$838.41M

Cash & equivalents minus total debt.

Recession resistance

Revenue through recessions

Worst single-year YoY revenue decline, 18 years of history

Strong
2008-2009 (GFC)
1.7%Grew through it
2020 (COVID)
8.6%Grew through it
Worst year on record(any fiscal year, not recession-limited)
-4.9%Mild decline

Cash-flow health

Free cash flow

$287.87M

Operating cash flow minus capex.

Positive free cash flow

PASS

FCF / net income

5.08

Cash-backing of earnings.

FCF/NI divergence

Unfavorable divergence (yellow flag).

PASS

Accruals healthy

Cash-backed earnings.

PASS

SBC / revenue

3.1%

Stock-based comp intensity.

Piotroski F-Score

F-Score

7 / 9

Fundamental-strength score (0-9).

Lifecycle Phase History

20202025
Capital Return
Hypergrowth
View full financial statements →