Executive Summary

Q2 2025 delivered underlying growth and margin expansion: Adjusted Revenue rose 3% to $0.423B, Adjusted EBITDA increased 14% to $0.106B (24.9% margin), and Adjusted EPS rose 36% to $0.97; GAAP EPS was $0.74, reversing a prior-year loss .
Learning led with 8% revenue growth to $0.162B and a 41.3% Adjusted EBITDA margin; Research grew modestly (2% revenue to $0.262B) with a 31.3% Adjusted EBITDA margin despite a $5M legacy print/licensing swing headwind .
Guidance reaffirmed: FY25 Adjusted Revenue $1.65–$1.69B, Adjusted EBITDA $385–$410M, Adjusted EPS $3.25–$3.60, and Free Cash Flow ~$125M; management expects uneven 2H phasing with Q4 elevated and Q3 seasonally softer .
Strategic catalysts: expanding AI licensing pipeline (two large deals executed YTD) and India’s One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) approval, which can broaden national access and support institutional models over time .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

“Continuous improvement is a way of life for us now, and it’s beginning to pay off in our quality growth and margin expansion,” said CEO Matt Kissner, highlighting broad-based execution and improving profitability .
Learning outperformed: revenue up 8% to $0.162B and Adjusted EBITDA up 24% with margin expanding to 41.3%; drivers included AI licensing, zyBooks courseware, inclusive access, and a favorable retail environment .
AI pipeline and productivity: two content rights projects executed YTD; 25% of colleagues reported productivity gains from AI tools; featured as an AI early adopter on Salesforce’s earnings call .

What Went Wrong

Research legacy revenue headwinds: a nonrecurring $5M swing in legacy print/licensing weighed on quarterly comps; prior-year onetime backfile deal drove unfavorable comparisons .
Seasonality and phasing: management guided to an uneven 2H with Q3 challenged by Learning seasonality and ongoing investments, while Q4 expected to be elevated; investors should plan for intra-year volatility .
Cash flow timing and leverage: H1 Free Cash Flow less product development spending was a use of $130M due to normal subscription cash collections timing, with Net Debt/EBITDA at 2.2x vs 2.0x prior year .

Financial Results

Consolidated Performance vs Prior Periods

Metric	Q4 2024	Q1 2025	Q2 2025
GAAP Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.468	$0.404	$0.427
Adjusted Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.441	$0.390	$0.423
Operating Income ($USD Millions)	$68.8	$29.0	$64.1
Adjusted Operating Income ($USD Millions)	$77.4	$35.4	$68.8
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$125.0	$72.6	$105.5
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	28.3%	18.6%	24.9%
GAAP EPS ($)	$0.46	($0.03)	$0.74
Adjusted EPS ($)	$1.21	$0.47	$0.97

Notes: Adjusted metrics exclude Held for Sale/Sold segment, FX and certain items as defined by the company .

Year-over-Year (Q2 2025 vs Q2 2024)

Metric	Q2 2024	Q2 2025
GAAP Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.493	$0.427
Adjusted Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.407	$0.423
GAAP EPS ($)	($0.35)	$0.74
Adjusted EPS ($)	$0.73	$0.97
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$92.4	$105.5
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	22.7%	24.9%

Segment Breakdown (Q2 2025)

Segment	Revenue ($USD Millions)	YoY Growth (CC)	Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)
Research (Total)	$261.9	+1%	$82.0	31.3%
- Research Publishing	$222.7	+1%	—	—
- Research Solutions	$39.2	+2%	—	—
Learning (Total)	$161.5	+7% (CC)	$66.8	41.3%
- Academic	$94.8	+5% (CC)	—	—
- Professional	$66.7	+11% (CC)	—	—

KPIs and Capital Allocation (YTD through Q2)

KPI	Value
Net Debt / EBITDA (TTM)	2.2x vs 2.0x prior year
Net Cash Used in Operating Activities	$(94)M
Free Cash Flow less Product Development Spending	$(130)M
Dividends + Buybacks Allocation	$64M; repurchased ~557K shares at $44.89 avg price
Dividend declaration	$0.3525 per share payable Jan 9, 2025

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Adjusted Revenue ($B)	FY2025	$1.65–$1.69	$1.65–$1.69	Maintained
Research Growth	FY2025	Low-to-mid single digit	Low-to-mid single digit	Maintained
Learning Growth	FY2025	Low single digit	Low single digit	Maintained
Adjusted EBITDA ($M)	FY2025	$385–$410	$385–$410	Maintained
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	FY2025	23–24%	23–24%	Maintained
Adjusted EPS ($)	FY2025	$3.25–$3.60	$3.25–$3.60	Maintained
Free Cash Flow ($M)	FY2025	~$125	~$125	Maintained
Capex ($M)	FY2025	$130 (not formal “guidance” but outlook)	$130 reiterated in outlook commentary	Maintained
Dividend	FY2025	Raised in June 2024 (31st consecutive year)	$0.3525 declared Dec 12, 2024	Maintained (incremental declaration)

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q4 2024)	Previous Mentions (Q1 2025)	Current Period (Q2 2025)	Trend
AI licensing & pipeline	Two large deals; early-stage, cautious approach; content primarily books; potential recurring models	Second $21M project executed; $17M recognized in Q1; selective partnerships; rights principles	Healthy pipeline across tech/pharma/info services; launching co-innovation program; Salesforce highlighted Wiley as early adopter	Positive momentum
Research demand & submissions/output	Submissions +15% TTM; output mid-single digit; OA +~20% expected	Submissions +18% in Q1; output +6%; Western markets recovered; focus on platform	CY25 renewals underway; ONOS in India approved; legacy swing impacted quarterly comps	Improving trajectory, with timing noise
Research integrity & platform	Deployed AI tools for fraud detection; platform migrations accelerating	End-to-end platform progressing; reducing turnaround times; AI in workflows	Refer-and-transfer AI pilot; 350+ journals migrated; ops/tech under one leader	Structural progress
Learning performance	Q4 boosted by $23M AI deal; academic/courseware momentum	Q1 growth from $17M of AI project; zyBooks +30%	Q2: Academic +6%, Professional +12%; margin +510 bps YoY	Sustained strength
Capital allocation & FCF	FY24 FCF $114M; buybacks up; dividend raised (30th year)	Q1 FCF use (seasonal); buybacks and dividend maintained	H1 FCF use of $130M; buybacks and dividend maintained; leverage at 2.2x	Seasonal cadence intact
Macro/policy (India ONOS)	Not highlighted	Not highlighted	India ONOS: national license for access; potential to support subscriptions/transformational agreements	Structural tailwind emerging

Management Commentary

CEO tone emphasized operational rigor and profitability: “We’re working to deliver compounding growth and material margin expansion over time… starting to see AI-related tailwinds” .
On Learning momentum: “Learning has had a good year so far, both Academic and Professional… continued strong margin improvement and EPS growth” .
On AI strategy: “We are recognized as a company at the forefront… 25% of colleagues recently reported productivity gains from AI tools” and partnering via co-innovation to build applications .
On India ONOS: “We’re encouraged… one national license… we’re not ready to talk about incremental benefit, but we’re encouraged by India’s 40% growth in article submissions” .

Q&A Highlights

Learning sustainability: Management cited zyBooks growth across CS/data/AI and improved trade execution; increasing signings as forward indicator .
Research dynamics: Submissions strong across Asia (India, China, Japan) and recovered in West; legacy revenue swing explained; growth expected to improve with renewals and Solutions pipeline .
Cost structure: Ongoing margin improvement as a “way of life”; focus areas include shared services and technology modernization; specifics to come later in the year .
Divestiture proceeds and capital allocation: Expect eventual collections tied to University Services; balanced approach with initial debt paydown and continued shareholder returns .
Investor day: Considering an event in calendar 2025 to update on strategy and momentum .

Estimates Context

We attempted to retrieve Wall Street consensus EPS and revenue estimates via S&P Global for Q2 2025 but the request was blocked due to a daily limit being exceeded; therefore, consensus comparisons are unavailable for this recap [functions.GetEstimates errors].
Given strong Adjusted EPS and margin expansion, and reaffirmed FY25 guidance, sell-side estimates may need to reflect: Learning margin durability (41% in Q2), a modest Research recovery despite legacy swings, and Q4-heavy phasing (elevated) vs Q3 (challenged) .

Key Takeaways for Investors

Learning is the near-term profit engine: margin expanded >500 bps YoY to 41.3% with diversified drivers (AI licensing, courseware, inclusive access, retail channel strength); durability looks favorable into 2H despite Q3 seasonality .
Research recovery progressing: modest growth amid timing effects and legacy swings; CY25 renewals and ONOS in India should support institutional models; watch Q4 for elevated phasing and Solutions improvement .
AI optionality is growing: two sizeable licensing deals completed; robust pipeline across tech/pharma/info services, plus productivity gains and platform-integrated integrity tools; recurring models could be future upside .
Cash flow cadence remains seasonal: H1 FCF typically a use; leverage at 2.2x remains manageable; dividends and buybacks continued (557K shares at $44.89), with a fresh dividend declaration in December .
Execution focus: leadership changes in finance, operations/technology, and marketing align with modernization, cost discipline, and brand/customer engagement—supporting sustained margin expansion through FY26 targets .
Trading lens: Expect intra-year volatility given Q3 softness and Q4 elevation; near-term catalysts include Q3 update on renewals, AI pipeline developments, and Evidence of Solutions recovery .
Medium-term thesis: Compounding growth from Research institutional/OA models, Learning’s digital/courseware shift, and AI monetization; margin targets (23–24% FY25; 24–25% FY26) credible given cost savings and platform productivity .

Appendix: Additional Data Tables

Segment Details Across Recent Quarters

Segment Metric	Q4 2024	Q1 2025	Q2 2025
Research Revenue ($USD Millions)	$271.0	$265.3	$261.9
Research Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$93.8	$77.8	$82.0
Research Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	34.6%	29.3%	31.3%
Learning Revenue ($USD Millions)	$170.1	$124.3	$161.5
Learning Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$74.0	$33.8	$66.8
Learning Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	43.5%	27.2%	41.3%

Cash Flow and Balance Sheet Highlights (YTD)

Metric	Q2 YTD FY2025
Net Cash Used in Operating Activities ($USD Millions)	$(94.0)
Capex ($USD Millions)	$(29.0) (tech/property) and $(7.1) (product dev)
Free Cash Flow less Product Development Spending ($USD Millions)	$(130.1)
Cash & Cash Equivalents ($USD Millions)	$75.5 (Oct 31, 2024)
Total Debt ($USD Millions)	Long-term $951.0; short-term $10.0

Notable Corporate Actions

Dividend declared $0.3525 per share (payable Jan 9, 2025) and continued buybacks (~557K shares at $44.89) .

Citations: All figures and statements are drawn from company filings, press releases, and the Q2 2025 earnings call transcript .

JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC. (WLY)·Q2 2025 Earnings Summary