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DoubleVerify Holdings, Inc. (DV)·Q1 2025 Earnings Summary

Executive Summary

  • DoubleVerify delivered a strong Q1 2025: revenue grew 17% year-over-year to $165.1M, Adjusted EBITDA was $44.7M (27% margin), and net income was $2.4M; growth was driven by broader verification and activation adoption, Scibids AI momentum, and 35% supply-side revenue growth .
  • Versus Wall Street, DV posted a revenue beat and an Adjusted EBITDA beat, but a significant EPS miss on S&P Global’s Primary EPS basis; management emphasized volume-driven growth and cost discipline despite a higher tax expense year-over-year .
  • Guidance: initially set Q2 revenue at $169–$173M and FY25 revenue growth at ~10% , later raised Q2 to $180–$184M and FY25 growth to ~13%, with Adjusted EBITDA margins ~30% for Q2 and ~32% for FY25 .
  • Strategic catalysts: early traction in Meta pre-bid social activation (20 customers activated), continued Scibids/AI rollout, retail media and supply-side platform expansions, and Rockerbox acquisition to deepen outcome measurement .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

  • Strong top-line and profitability: revenue +17% YoY to $165.1M; Adjusted EBITDA $44.7M with a 27% margin; advertiser revenue +16% YoY and supply-side +35% YoY .
  • AI and activation adoption: Scibids AI upsold to 200+ customers, >50 of top-100 clients now using Scibids; early Meta pre-bid activation traction (20 customers), with suitability improvement of up to 9 points for early adopters .
  • CTV leadership and growth: CTV MTM +43% YoY in Q1; DV highlighted uncovering sophisticated fraud and expanding content-level scoring and publisher integrations—a key growth vector into upfronts .

What Went Wrong

  • EPS and tax headwind: GAAP diluted EPS was $0.01 versus $0.04 last year as income tax expense rose to $7.2M from $1.8M, compressing net income margin to 1% .
  • Social measurement softness and international decline: social measurement revenue increased only 1% YoY; international measurement revenue declined 8% due to a large customer pausing spend (commodity cost shock) discussed last quarter .
  • Price mix pressure (MTF): advertiser pricing (MTF) declined 6% YoY (ex-intro fixed-fee), reflecting product/geographic mix and competitive rates in large “moat” displacements, even as MTM volumes rose 22% YoY .

Financial Results

Consolidated Metrics vs prior periods

MetricQ3 2024Q4 2024Q1 2025
Revenue ($USD Millions)$169.6 $190.6 $165.1
Net Income ($USD Millions)$18.2 $23.4 $2.4
GAAP Diluted EPS ($USD)$0.10 $0.12 $0.01
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)$60.2 $73.8 $44.7
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)35% 39% 27%

Segment Revenue (Q1 2025)

SegmentQ1 2025 ($USD Millions)Q1 2024 ($USD Millions)YoY Change
Activation$95.172 $79.322 +20%
Measurement$53.430 $49.275 +8%
Supply-side$16.459 $12.185 +35%
Total Revenue$165.061 $140.782 +17%

KPIs and Margins (Q1 2025)

KPI/MarginValueContext
MTM (volume) YoY+22% Volume driver in advertiser business
MTF (price) YoY−6% (ex intro fixed fee) Mix and competitive rates
CTV MTM YoY+43% Strong measurement volume growth
Social Measurement Rev YoY+1% Soft due to large customer pause
International Measurement Rev YoY−8% Impact from large global customer
Gross Revenue Retention>95% Ongoing retention strength
Net Income Margin1% Higher tax expense YoY
Adjusted EBITDA Margin27% Within long-term framework

Cash Flow and Capital Allocation (Q1 2025)

MetricQ1 2025Q1 2024
Net Cash from Operating Activities ($USD Millions)$37.663 $31.774
Share Repurchases5.2M shares for $82.24M —
Authorization Remaining$140M under $200M new program —

Guidance Changes

MetricPeriodPrevious GuidanceCurrent GuidanceChange
Revenue ($USD Millions)Q2 2025$169–$173 $180–$184 Raised
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)Q2 2025$48–$52 $52–$56 Raised
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)Q2 2025~29% midpoint ~30% midpoint Raised
Revenue Growth (%)FY 2025~10% ~13% Raised
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)FY 2025~32% ~32% Maintained

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

TopicPrevious Mentions (Q3 2024, Q4 2024)Current Period (Q1 2025)Trend
Social Activation (Meta/TikTok)Announced upcoming pre-bid solutions; gradual social measurement adoption Launched Meta pre-bid; 20 customers activated; suitability improved by up to 9 points; TikTok exclusion list GA Accelerating activation; flywheel with measurement
CTV Fraud/TransparencyCTV measurement volumes +59% in Q3; +95% in Q4; attach rate challenges in PG/PMP CTV MTM +43% YoY; continued fraud leadership and content-level scoring investments Sustained growth and product expansion
AI/Scibids AdoptionScibids grew >50% YoY in 2024; 40 of top 100 clients using >50 of top 100 clients now using; >200 DV customers upsold Continued adoption momentum
Supply-Side & Retail MediaSupply-side +30% (Q3) and +34% (Q4); retail media expansion Supply-side +35% YoY; RM networks accepted DV tags across 129 networks/sites Strong growth sustained
Macro/CohortsPost-election softness; large CPG customer paused due to commodity costs; cohorts stabilizing April steady; prudence in FY guide despite no macro impact yet Cautious stance, execution strong
Sell-side CurationExpanding sell-side integrations (Google Ad Manager, Index, Criteo) Continued push to improve attach in PG/PMP Building distribution and attach

Management Commentary

  • “DoubleVerify is off to a strong start in 2025, with first-quarter revenue and adjusted EBITDA meaningfully ahead of expectations…strong momentum with Scibids AI, and encouraging early success in social activation.” — CEO Mark Zagorski .
  • “We exceeded expectations in Q1, delivering 17% revenue growth and 27% adjusted EBITDA margins…strong cash flow generation and debt-free balance sheet enabled us to repurchase shares and invest in growth opportunities like Rockerbox.” — CFO Nicola Allais .
  • “Encouragingly, business momentum remained steady through April with no evidence of macroeconomic pressure affecting customer demand.” — CEO Mark Zagorski .

Q&A Highlights

  • Macro prudence: Guidance kept conservative despite April strength; management sees resilience given performance-focused solutions and volume-based model dynamics when CPMs compress .
  • Social activation ramp: Meta pre-bid solution ahead of expectations; activation requires post-bid measurement, creating a virtuous cycle for measurement adoption .
  • CTV dynamics: Fraud remains a focal risk due to high CPMs; DV deepening transparency and outcome linkages with partners like EDO .
  • DSP competition: DV largely indifferent across DSPs; pricing competition at DSPs has limited impact on DV given small fee share, and distribution remains broad .
  • Cohort/CPG update: The large CPG customer pause is considered idiosyncratic; broader CPG category remains healthy and growing with new wins .

Estimates Context

MetricPeriodConsensusActualSurprise
Revenue ($USD Millions)Q1 2025153.085*165.061 +$11.976
Primary EPS ($USD)Q1 20250.1516*0.0514*−0.1002
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)Q1 202538.785*44.654 +$5.869
Revenue ($USD Millions)Q2 2025181.542*—Guidance raised to $180–$184

Values retrieved from S&P Global.
Note: DV reported GAAP diluted EPS of $0.01 for Q1 2025 ; S&P Global’s Primary EPS actual (0.0514*) reflects normalization differences versus GAAP.

Guidance Analysis and Drivers

  • Q2 revenue and EBITDA ranges raised ahead of Innovation Day, reflecting sustained demand and execution; FY revenue growth raised to ~13% while margins held at ~32% .
  • Why: faster scaling by new enterprise customers, broader adoption of verification/activation, Scibids AI momentum, and strong supply-side/retail media performance; cautious macro stance retained despite April strength .

Key Takeaways for Investors

  • Near-term: Q1 beat on revenue and Adjusted EBITDA with strong April momentum; the June raise to Q2/FY guidance is a positive catalyst for estimate revisions in revenue and margins .
  • EPS optics: GAAP diluted EPS compressed by higher tax expense; focus on Adjusted EBITDA and cash generation remains appropriate for valuation framing .
  • Activation flywheel: Meta pre-bid activation requires measurement, likely boosting social measurement attach; early results show brand suitability improvements .
  • AI-led optimization: Scibids adoption (>50 of top-100) and Rockerbox outcome measurement expand DV’s performance stack, supporting multi-year wallet share expansion .
  • CTV opportunity: DV is positioned to monetize rising CTV measurement scale and push for greater transparency, potentially enabling pricing enhancements over time .
  • Supply-side stability: Platform deals and retail media integrations underpin double-digit growth and high profitability in supply-side revenue .
  • Capital allocation: Ongoing buybacks and a debt-free balance sheet provide flexibility while investing in product/AI efficiency and integrations (Rockerbox) .

Appendix: Additional Business Highlights (Q1 2025)

  • Product launches: Pre-screen brand safety for Google SPN; expanded Instagram Reels measurement; TikTok Video Exclusion List GA; 3D in-experience measurement on Roblox .
  • Share repurchases: 5.2M shares for $82.2M in Q1; $140M remained under new $200M program as of March 31, 2025 .
  • Balance sheet: $156.4M cash and equivalents; total assets $1.249B; no long-term debt .