Charles Larkin's questions to MARKETWISE (MKTW) leadership • Q2 2023
Question
Charles Larkin of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. questioned the divergence between MarketWise's improving churn and Schwab's weaker Q2 trading data, and asked if the positive outlook implies potential for sequential revenue growth.
Answer
SVP Lee Harris clarified that Schwab's Q1 data was an anomaly due to mini-bank runs and that Schwab's metrics began improving in July, lagging MarketWise slightly. Regarding revenue, CEO Amber Mason and Lee Harris explained that GAAP revenue lags billings due to amortization. While new subscribers are a positive leading indicator for future billings, it will take several quarters of billing growth for GAAP revenue to show a significant increase.