Executive Summary

Q1 FY2026 was modestly better than expected: revenue rose 2% YoY to $2.14B and Total Segment EBITDA grew 5% to $340M, with strength at Dow Jones (+6% revenue) and Digital Real Estate Services (+5% revenue) offsetting Book Publishing headwinds from a $13M receivable write-off .
Results beat Wall Street on revenue ($2.144B vs $2.109B*) and on EPS (Adjusted EPS $0.22 vs $0.19*; GAAP EPS $0.20), with momentum in Dow Jones’ professional information (Risk & Compliance +16%) and digital circulation underpinning the outperformance .
Management reiterated confidence in FY2026 free cash flow and highlighted a sharply faster buyback cadence (“over four times” last year’s pace), following July’s new $1B authorization; capital return is now a key near-term stock catalyst .
News Media profitability improved on cost savings and pricing, while Book Publishing margins were pressured by the receivable write-off; management framed AI/IP licensing as a structural earnings opportunity with more partnerships expected .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- Dow Jones growth: revenue +6% YoY to $586M and Segment EBITDA +10% YoY, driven by 16% Risk & Compliance growth to $94M and higher digital circulation; digital was 84% of segment revenue .
- Digital Real Estate Services execution: segment revenue +5% and Segment EBITDA +13% YoY; Move (Realtor.com) revenue +9% to $152M (best YoY growth since Q2 FY2022) as premium products (RealPRO Select) lifted revenue per lead .
- Cost discipline in News Media: Segment EBITDA +67% YoY on cost savings and higher pricing; circulation/subscription revenue +2% YoY despite print volume declines .
- CEO tone on AI/IP monetization: “We expect to announce further partnerships in the near future, which we expect to have a positive impact on our results,” positioning IP licensing as a structural tailwind .
What Went Wrong
- Book Publishing: revenue -2% YoY and Segment EBITDA -28% on a $13M receivable write-off and softer consumer spending; digital book sales fell 9% (audiobooks -11%, e-books -9%) on tough comps and mix .
- Advertising softness in News Media: advertising revenue -4% YoY driven by lower print/digital advertising in Australia, partially offset by New York Post strength .
- Free cash flow still seasonally light in Q1: FCF improved but remained low at $4M (vs -$49M LY) as higher operating cash was offset by higher capex .

Financial Results

Overall performance vs prior periods and estimates

Metric	Q3 FY2025 (3/31/25)	Q4 FY2025 (6/30/25)	Q1 FY2026 (9/30/25)	Q1 FY2026 Consensus*
Revenue ($USD Billions)	$2.009	$2.109	$2.144	$2.109*
GAAP Diluted EPS (Cont. Ops)	$0.14	$0.09	$0.20	n/a
Adjusted EPS	$0.17	$0.19	$0.22	$0.19*
Total Segment EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$290	$322	$340	n/a

Q1 FY2026 print beat: revenue $2.144B vs $2.109B*; Adjusted EPS $0.22 vs $0.19*; GAAP EPS $0.20 .
Values with asterisk are from S&P Global consensus (see Estimates Context).

Segment revenue and Segment EBITDA (oldest → newest)

Segment	Q3 FY2025 Rev ($M)	Q4 FY2025 Rev ($M)	Q1 FY2026 Rev ($M)	Q3 FY2025 EBITDA ($M)	Q4 FY2025 EBITDA ($M)	Q1 FY2026 EBITDA ($M)
Dow Jones	575	604	586	132	151	144
Digital Real Estate Services	406	466	479	124	152	158
Book Publishing	514	494	534	64	50	58
News Media	514	545	545	33	28	30
Other	—	—	—	(63)	(59)	(50)
Total	2,009	2,109	2,144	290	322	340

Selected KPIs – Dow Jones subscriptions (oldest → newest)

KPI (Average subs, ‘000s)	Q3 FY2025	Q4 FY2025	Q1 FY2026
WSJ Digital-only	3,913	4,126	4,217
WSJ Total	4,339	4,538	4,610
Total Consumer Digital-only	5,543	5,719	5,878
Total Consumer Subscriptions	6,103	6,261	6,392

Cash flow snapshot

Metric	Q1 FY2025	Q1 FY2026
Net Cash from Ops (Cont. Ops) ($M)	$26	$85
Capital Expenditures ($M)	$(75)	$(81)
Free Cash Flow ($M)	$(49)	$4

Notes and non-GAAP adjustments:

Adjusted EPS rose to $0.22 vs $0.20 LY; reconciliation includes U.K. Newspaper Matters (+$1M), impairment/restructuring (+$19M), Other, net (-(4)M), and tax effects .
Book Publishing Segment EBITDA included a $13M receivable write-off .

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Free Cash Flow	FY2026	Not quantified (prior release emphasized strong cash generation in FY2025)	“Expect to generate strong free cash flow this fiscal year”	Positive qualitative update
Share Repurchases	Ongoing	New $1B buyback authorized July 2025; intent to accelerate post-Q4 release	“Rate of share repurchases… running at over four times the fiscal 2025 pace”	Accelerated
Dividend	Semi-annual	Declared $0.10 per share payable Oct 8, 2025 (Q4 FY2025 release)	No new dividend update in Q1 FY2026 release	Maintained (no update)

No explicit numerical guidance (revenue/margin/OpEx/tax) was provided in Q1 FY2026 materials .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Note: A webcast was held, but a transcript was not available in the document set. The company provided a webcast link and pre-call notice .

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q-2: Q3 FY2025; Q-1: Q4 FY2025)	Current Period (Q1 FY2026)	Trend
AI/IP monetization	Emphasized protecting IP value in AI era; strategic focus on content licensing	“Expect to announce further partnerships… positive impact on results”; courts/companies recognizing need to purchase content	Strengthening monetization narrative
Dow Jones professional info	Risk & Compliance +11%; Energy +10%; digital circulation strength	Risk & Compliance +16% to $94M; Energy +7% to $73M; digital 84% of revenue	Sustained double-digit growth in PIB
Housing market / Realtor.com	Move revenue growth resumed (Q3 +2%, Q4 +3%); premium product mix improving	Move +9% revenue; premium shift (RealPRO Select); lead volumes still soft (-1% YoY)	Gradual recovery with mix tailwind
News Media cost actions	Cost savings drove EBITDA +22% in Q3; Q4 adjusted EBITDA -18% on revenue mix, but structural savings continued	EBITDA +67% YoY on cost savings and pricing; ad still soft	Margin improvement despite ad pressure
Capital returns	Signaled accelerated buybacks post Q4; new $1B authorization	Repurchase pace “>4x” FY2025 run-rate	Clear acceleration
Book Publishing dynamics	Q3: digital sales +3%; strong backlist; Q4: revenue -4% on softer demand; digital +5% FY	Revenue -2% YoY; $13M write-off; digital sales -9% on mix/tough comps	Temporary setback; mgmt sees recent improvement

Management Commentary

“News Corp continued to increase both revenue and profitability in the first quarter… led by strength at Dow Jones and Digital Real Estate Services, and bolstered by digital and AI-related revenues.”
“We expect to generate strong free cash flow this fiscal year, and have thus materially increased the rate of our share buybacks… our shares are undervalued.”
“It is… clear that the value of IP in the age of AI is misconceived… we expect to announce further partnerships in the near future.”
Dow Jones growth drivers: professional information revenues (Risk & Compliance +16% to $94M; Energy +7% to $73M) and digital circulation pricing/mix .
Realtor.com focus: premium offerings (RealPRO Select) raising revenue per lead while macro headwinds still constrain volumes (-1% YoY leads; 72M avg monthly users) .

Q&A Highlights

The company hosted a webcast, but a transcript was not available in the corpus; replay is accessible via the investor site link shared in the releases .
Key clarifications embedded in releases: stronger buyback pacing (>4x FY2025), expectation for strong FY2026 free cash flow, and progress on AI/IP licensing discussions .

Estimates Context

Q1 FY2026 vs S&P Global consensus: Revenue $2.144B vs $2.109B* (beat); Adjusted/Primary EPS $0.22 vs $0.19* (beat). Primary EPS estimates based on S&P Global definitions; GAAP EPS reported at $0.20 .
Estimate counts: EPS (# est.) = 3*; Revenue (# est.) = 11*.
Potential estimate revisions: upside in Dow Jones PIB and Move’s premium product mix, partially offset by Book Publishing normalization after the receivable write-off and continued ad softness in News Media .

Values with asterisk are retrieved from S&P Global.

Key Takeaways for Investors

Quality beat: modest top-line and EPS outperformance driven by Dow Jones PIB and Realtor.com mix shift; near-term estimate risk skews upward, particularly in Dow Jones .
Capital returns accelerating: >4x buyback pace plus July’s $1B authorization should provide incremental EPS support and re-rate potential if sustained .
Structural AI/IP monetization optionality: management signaling more licensing partnerships; could create a durable, high-margin revenue stream over time .
News Media operating leverage returning via cost actions and pricing; monitor ad trajectory in Australia/UK for confirmation of recovery .
Book Publishing headwind appears transitory (write-off/mix); watch for digital format stabilization and holiday list performance in Q2 seasonally stronger period .
Cash generation improving YoY despite seasonality; management confident FY2026 FCF will be strong, reinforcing buyback capacity .
Near-term catalysts: additional AI/IP partnerships, Realtor.com premium product ramps, continued PIB growth at Risk & Compliance, and visible buyback execution .

Sources

Q1 FY2026 8-K and Exhibit 99.1 earnings release, including financial statements, segment detail, cash flow, and non-GAAP reconciliations .
Q4 FY2025 8-K and release for sequential/trend analysis .
Q3 FY2025 8-K and release for prior-quarter comps .
Repurchase program authorization press release (July 15, 2025) .
Earnings call scheduling press release and webcast link .
CFO transition press release (Susan Panuccio) for leadership context .

S&P Global consensus data used for estimate comparisons (values marked with asterisk).

NEWS CORP (NWSA)·Q1 2026 Earnings Summary