NIQ Announces Strong Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
NIQ Global Intelligence plc (NYSE: NIQ) (the “Company”, or “NIQ”), a leading global consumer intelligence company, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended ...
- Exceeded Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and levered free cash flow guidance and achieved positive free cash flow for the full year.
- Delivered 9.2% reported revenue growth in Q4, or 5.7% organic constant currency ("OCC")
- Drove 7.7% and 7.1% Intelligence OCC revenue growth in Q4 and full year 2025, respectively
- Improved net loss and increased cash provided by operating activities to $298.7 million and grew $224.8 million year-over-year
- Accelerated Adjusted EBITDA growth, and delivered positive levered free cash flow in FY25, including $315.3 million of levered free cash flow in the second half of 2025
- Announced tech-enabled cost‑efficiency actions expected to enhance projected 2026 margins
- Introducing 2026 financial guidance; we expect 5.0% to 5.3% OCC revenue growth, 23.5% to 23.8% Adjusted EBITDA margin, and $235.0M to $250.0M of levered free cash flow
CHICAGO: NIQ Global Intelligence plc (NYSE: NIQ) (the “Company”, or “NIQ”), a leading global consumer intelligence company, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2025.
Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
Revenue:
- Total revenue grew 9.2% year-over-year to $1,139.1 million. Organic constant currency revenue grew 5.7%, led by EMEA and Americas, which grew 7.5% and 5.7%, respectively.
- Intelligence revenue (as reported) grew 10.9%, or 7.7% in organic constant currency. Activation revenue (as reported) grew 3.4%, or a 1.2% decrease year-over-year in organic constant currency.
- Annualized Intelligence Subscription revenue grew 6.6% to $2,877.1 million with 105% Intelligence Subscription Net Dollar Retention and 98% Gross Dollar Retention.
Earnings:
- Net loss and Adjusted Net Loss improved by $140.7 million and $58.5 million year-over-year.
- Adjusted EBITDA growth accelerated to 30.2% resulting in $289.2 million. Adjusted EBITDA margin expanded by 410 basis points year-over-year to 25.4%.
- Net cash provided by operating activities was $188.7 million and increased $120.4 million year-over-year driven by higher profitability as well as reduced interest payments resulting from our transformed capital structure post-IPO. Net working capital contributed $45.8 million of net cash inflows driven by improved days sales outstanding (“DSOs”).
- Unlevered free cash flow of $149.7 million increased $79.2 million year-over-year driven by higher profitability, improved net working capital and increased capital efficiency.
“Q4 exceeded expectations and capped a defining year for NIQ,” said Jim Peck, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We entered the public markets, executed with discipline, and delivered durable organic growth, significant margin expansion, and $315 million of levered free cash flow in the back half-achieving positive free cash flow ahead of schedule.”
“In 2026, we're harnessing AI to fundamentally strengthen NIQ’s competitive position. As enterprises move from experimentation to operational AI, trusted, governed, and decision‑grade data becomes mission‑critical-and that is where NIQ excels. Our data moat is built on proprietary datasets at global scale. We are embedding AI across our data, products, and workflows to widen our moat, accelerate innovation and drive monetization, and structurally lower our cost base. Our inflecting free cash flow-together with cost‑efficiency actions supporting our improved 2026 margin outlook-potentially mark a prominent next phase of profitable growth for NIQ.”
“We achieved all of the key financial priorities we set at our IPO-consistent organic growth, expanded margins, positive free cash flow, and reduced leverage,” added Mike Burwell, Chief Financial Officer. “In 2026, we expect to build on this momentum with 5‑plus percent organic revenue growth, continued margin and free cash flow expansion, and disciplined capital allocation-including growth‑focused capex, investments in our AI capabilities, and tuck‑in M&A.”
Full Year 2025 Results
Revenue:
- Total revenue grew 5.7% year-over-year to $4,198.4 million. Organic constant currency revenue grew 5.7%. Revenue growth was led by EMEA and Americas, which grew 7.2% and 5.9% respectively.
- Intelligence revenue (as reported) grew 6.6%, or 7.1% in organic constant currency. Activation revenue (as reported) grew 2.1% and was flat year-over-year in organic constant currency.
Earnings:
- Net loss and Adjusted Net Loss improved $444.7 million and $211.1 million year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA growth accelerated to 23.8% resulting in $916.5 million. Adjusted EBITDA margin expanded by 320 basis points year-over-year to 21.8%.
- Net cash provided by operating activities was $298.7 million and grew $224.8 million year-over-year driven by lower payments on interest and higher profitability.
- Unlevered free cash flow of $334.5 million grew $147.9 million year-over-year driven by higher profitability and increased capital efficiency.
Summary Fourth Quarter & Full Year 2025 Business Highlights:
Key client developments, including:
- Landed five eight-figure Intelligence renewals with enterprise clients and drove continued strong Consumer Panel takeaways in Western Europe and LATAM
- Cross-sold eCommerce solutions to 29% of Intelligence clients in 2025 (up from 19% in 2024), and grew Full View Measurement clients to more than 190, and accelerated eCommerce revenue growth 32% in 2025
- Increased client Net Promoter Score to 49, our highest reading ever-up 11 points year-over-year-driven by strong gains in Western Europe and Asia Pacific
- Selected by Kellanova Europe-the global snacking powerhouse behind favorites like Pringles®, Cheez-It®, Pop-Tarts®, and Rice Krispies Treats®-to help power its consumer understanding and decision-making across 29 European markets
- Selected by EURONICS, one of the largest retail cooperatives in the Technical Consumer Goods sector, to deliver Online Price Monitoring across their digital shelf – giving its members clear, real-time visibility into market pricing and consumer trends to track competitive pricing, detect early market shifts, and activate strategies that drive growth
New AI-enabled product launches & capabilities, including:
- Reached 4 trillion data records captured per week in our AI-powered Connect data engine
- Beta-launched agentic AI Analyst feature in Discover spanning key client persona use-cases across Account Performance, Pricing, Distribution, and Shopper Analysis
- Expanded BASES AI Product Developer to 35 clients and 40 countries and BASES AI Screener to 36 clients and 209 categories in 2025
AI-enabled cost efficiency, including:
- Reduced cash data costs to 15% of revenue in 2025
- Embedded AI across engineering, data operations, sales, and corporate support functions is boosting productivity, improving delivery and lowering cost‑to‑serve;
Financial Summary & Operating Metrics
|
| Three Months Ended December 31, |
| Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||||||
(in millions) |
|
| 2025 |
|
|
| 2024 |
|
| Y/Y Growth |
|
| 2025 |
|
|
| 2024 |
|
| Y/Y Growth | ||
Reported revenue(1) |
| $ | 1,139.1 |
|
| $ | 1,042.8 |
|
| 9.2 | % |
| $ | 4,198.4 |
|
| $ | 3,972.6 |
|
| 5.7 | % |
Organic constant currency revenue growth |
|
|
|
|
| 5.7 | % |
|
|
|
|
| 5.7 | % | ||||||||
Reported operating income (loss) |
| $ | 65.0 |
|
| $ | (24.5 | ) |
| n/m |
|
| $ | 85.4 |
|
| $ | (99.8 | ) |
| n/m |
|
Reported net loss attributable to NIQ |
| $ | (32.2 | ) |
| $ | (172.9 | ) |
| 81.4 | % |
| $ | (353.3 | ) |
| $ | (798.0 | ) |
| 55.7 | % |
Adjusted EBITDA(1) |
| $ | 289.2 |
|
| $ | 222.1 |
|
| 30.2 | % |
| $ | 916.5 |
|
| $ | 740.5 |
|
| 23.8 | % |
Adjusted net income (loss) |
| $ | 58.9 |
|
| $ | 0.4 |
|
| n/m |
|
| $ | 61.9 |
|
| $ | (149.2 | ) |
| n/m |
|
Reported net cash provided by operating activities |
| $ | 188.7 |
|
| $ | 68.3 |
|
| n/m |
|
| $ | 298.7 |
|
| $ | 73.9 |
|
| n/m |
|
Unlevered free cash flow |
| $ | 149.7 |
|
| $ | 70.5 |
|
| n/m |
|
| $ | 334.5 |
|
| $ | 186.6 |
|
| 79.3 | % |
Cash paid for interest |
| $ | 58.8 |
|
| $ | 94.5 |
|
| (37.8 | )% |
| $ | 298.7 |
|
| $ | 411.4 |
|
| (27.4 | )% |
Free cash flow |
| $ | 90.9 |
|
| $ | (24.0 | ) |
| n/m |
|
| $ | 35.8 |
|
| $ | (224.8 | ) |
| n/m |
|
* A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is provided at the end of this release. Percentage changes that are not meaningful are presented as “n/m”.
(1) Metric is presented on an as-reported basis at actual FX rates. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Fourth Quarter & Full Year 2025 Segment Results
|
| Three Months Ended December 31, |
| Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
(in millions) |
|
| 2025 |
|
|
| 2024 |
|
| Reported Growth |
| Organic CC Growth |
|
| 2025 |
|
|
| 2024 |
|
| Reported Growth |
| Organic CC Growth | ||||
Reported revenue(1) |
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Americas |
| $ | 450.6 |
|
| $ | 413.4 |
|
| 9.0 | % |
| 5.7 | % |
| $ | 1,632.2 |
|
| $ | 1,550.2 |
|
| 5.3 | % |
| 5.9 | % |
EMEA |
|
| 505.6 |
|
|
| 448.3 |
|
| 12.8 | % |
| 7.5 | % |
|
| 1,864.5 |
|
|
| 1,731.5 |
|
| 7.7 | % |
| 7.2 | % |
APAC |
|
| 182.9 |
|
|
| 181.1 |
|
| 1.0 | % |
| 1.2 | % |
|
| 701.7 |
|
|
| 690.9 |
|
| 1.6 | % |
| 1.7 | % |
Total reported revenue |
| $ | 1,139.1 |
|
| $ | 1,042.8 |
|
| 9.2 | % |
| 5.7 | % |
| $ | 4,198.4 |
|
| $ | 3,972.6 |
|
| 5.7 | % |
| 5.7 | % |
|
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Reported revenue(1) |
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