Revenue rose from $264.3M in 2025Q1 to $375.9M in 2026Q3 with gross margin near 14.7% and operating margin of 7.7%, indicating growth that is real but structurally thin in profitability.
MediaAlpha, Inc. (MAX) annual income statement — 8-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 1.29B | 1.11B | 864.7M | 388.15M | 459.07M | 645.27M | 584.81M | 408M | 296.91M |
| Revenue Growth % | 15.22% | 28.78% | 122.78% | -15.45% | -28.86% | 10.34% | 43.34% | 37.42% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 1.1B | 946.06M | 721.13M | 321.44M | 389.01M | 543.75M | 499.43M | 342.91M | 247.67M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 84.95% | 83.4% | 82.81% | 84.74% | 84.27% | 85.4% | 84.05% | 83.42% |
| Gross Profit | 192.01M | 164.56M | 143.57M | 66.71M | 70.06M | 101.52M | 85.38M | 65.1M | 49.24M |
| Gross Margin % | 14.84% | 14.78% | 16.6% | 17.19% | 15.26% | 15.73% | 14.6% | 15.95% | 16.58% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 14.62% | 115.21% | -4.78% | -30.99% | 18.91% | 31.16% | 32.2% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 42.43M | 86.35M | 100.85M | 106.64M | 105.45M | 99.38M | 65.84M | 40.26M | 29.92M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 7.75% | 11.66% | 27.47% | 22.97% | 15.4% | 11.26% | 9.87% | 10.08% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 75.49M | 110.61M | 69.99M | 83.88M | 84.37M | 84.18M | 53.4M | 33.21M | 19.58M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 9.93% | 8.09% | 21.61% | 18.38% | 13.05% | 9.13% | 8.14% | 6.6% |
| Research & Development | 23.04M | 21.4M | 19.76M | 18.46M | 21.08M | 15.2M | 12.45M | 7.04M | 10.34M |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | 1.92% | 2.29% | 4.76% | 4.59% | 2.35% | 2.13% | 1.73% | 3.48% |
| Other Operating Expenses | -1000K | -45.66M | 11.09M | 4.3M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Operating Income | 149.58M | 78.22M | 42.73M | -39.92M | -35.39M | 2.15M | 19.54M | 24.84M | 19.32M |
| Operating Margin % | 11.56% | 7.02% | 4.94% | -10.29% | -7.71% | 0.33% | 3.34% | 6.09% | 6.51% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 83.07% | 207.02% | -12.81% | -1746.81% | -89% | -21.36% | 28.58% | - |
| EBITDA | 151.82M | 81.47M | 49.41M | -32.65M | -29.24M | 5.5M | 23.02M | 30.49M | 31.27M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 11.73% | 7.32% | 5.71% | -8.41% | -6.37% | 0.85% | 3.94% | 7.47% | 10.53% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 578.05% | 64.89% | 251.3% | -11.66% | -631.5% | -76.1% | -24.49% | -2.5% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 2.24M | 3.25M | 6.68M | 7.27M | 6.15M | 3.35M | 3.49M | 5.65M | 11.96M |
| EBIT | 19.23M | -99.82M | 53.82M | -35.62M | 39.7M | -1.69M | 19.54M | 24.84M | 19.32M |
| Net Interest Income | -10.59M | -11.24M | -14.35M | -15.31M | -9.24M | -7.83M | -7.94M | -7.02M | -1.19M |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 10.59M | 11.24M | 14.35M | 15.31M | 9.24M | 7.83M | 7.94M | 7.02M | 1.19M |
| Other Income/Expense | -140.93M | -189.28M | -19.22M | -17.09M | 65.85M | -11.67M | -10.24M | -7.02M | -1.19M |
| Pretax Income | 8.65M | -111.06M | 23.5M | -57.02M | 30.46M | -9.52M | 9.29M | 17.82M | 18.13M |
| Pretax Margin % | 0.67% | -9.97% | 2.72% | -14.69% | 6.63% | -1.48% | 1.59% | 4.37% | 6.1% |
| Income Tax | -110.53M | -137.82M | 1.38M | -463K | 102.91M | -1.05M | -1.27M | 0 | 0 |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -1278.05% | 124.1% | 5.89% | 0.81% | 337.85% | 11% | -13.63% | 0% | 0% |
| Net Income | 108.06M | 25.62M | 16.63M | -40.42M | -57.67M | -5.28M | 14.8M | 17.82M | 18.13M |
| Net Margin % | 8.35% | 2.3% | 1.92% | -10.41% | -12.56% | -0.82% | 2.53% | 4.37% | 6.1% |
| Net Income Growth % | 9554.51% | 54.09% | 141.14% | 29.91% | -993.19% | -135.64% | -16.95% | -1.68% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 119.17M | 26.76M | 22.12M | -56.55M | -72.45M | -8.47M | 10.56M | 17.82M | 18.13M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | -31.57M | -33.35M | -48.61M | -84.13M | -70.09M | -57.23M | -71.34M | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 1.72 | 0.39 | 0.31 | -0.89 | -1.37 | -0.19 | -0.14 | 0.54 | 0.55 |
| EPS Growth % | 8725.59% | 25.81% | 134.83% | 35.04% | -621.05% | -35.71% | -125.93% | -1.82% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 0.46 | 0.31 | -0.89 | -1.37 | -0.14 | -0.14 | 0.54 | 0.55 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 62.83M | 66.79M | 53.04M | 45.57M | 41.94M | 61.26M | 32.13M | 1.02M | 33.17M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 53.09M | 56.24M | 53.04M | 45.42M | 41.94M | 28.41M | 32.13M | 1.02M | 33.17M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | 7.35% | - | - | - | 887.95% | 536.7% | 87.6% |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying MAX stock.
For fiscal year 2025, MediaAlpha, Inc. (MAX) reported total revenue of $1.11B. This represents a 275.1% increase compared to $296.9M in 2018.
MediaAlpha, Inc. (MAX) is profitable, generating $25.6M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 2.3%.
MediaAlpha, Inc. (MAX) reported an operating income of $78.2M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 7.0%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
MediaAlpha, Inc. (MAX) generated $164.6M in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 14.8%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Thin gross margin dependence
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Revenue Re-Accelerating After Volatile Stretch
As reported in the income statement, MAX revenue rose from $264.3M in 2025Q1 to $375.9M in 2026Q3, with year-over-year growth of 22.7% in the latest quarter indicating a sustained recovery in carrier-driven demand.
The quarterly series shows a sharp contraction in 2025Q2 followed by consistent sequential expansion, which suggests the top line is tracking the recovery in auto and health carrier acquisition budgets. Because revenue is gross of traffic acquisition payouts, the headline growth rate may overstate economic expansion, and investors should monitor whether contribution dollars grow in step with reported revenue. Sustainability depends on whether carrier spending holds through the next underwriting cycle rather than reflecting a one-time seasonal lift.
Thin Gross Margin Caps Structural Economics
Based on reported figures, MAX gross margin has held in a narrow 14.2% to 17.8% band across the last ten quarters, with the latest quarter at 14.7%, reflecting a high pass-through of revenue to supply partners.
The stability of gross margin around the mid-teens suggests the revenue-share model has limited pricing flexibility, and the company's economics are driven primarily by volume rather than by margin expansion. The 2024Q2 peak near 17.8% and subsequent compression may indicate that bidding intensity or traffic costs shift with carrier demand. Investors should treat any further gross margin deterioration as a meaningful signal of weakening marketplace pricing power.
Operating Leverage Emerging Unevenly
According to reported quarterly figures, MAX operating margin reached 7.7% in 2026Q3 versus 6.4% a year earlier, suggesting modest operating leverage as SG&A remained near $20M while revenue grew.
SG&A held roughly flat in dollar terms across the period, so the improvement in operating margin appears driven by revenue growth outpacing overhead rather than by structural cost cuts. The large 2025Q4 operating income spike to $78.4M is an outlier that does not appear to reflect recurring economics and warrants further investigation before being extrapolated. Sustained leverage would require operating income to scale faster than gross profit over multiple quarters.
Net Income Volatility Obscures Core Earnings
As reported in financial statements, MAX net income swung from a $39.4M profit in 2026Q2 to a $25.8M profit in 2026Q3, with net margin ranging from negative 7.4% to 12.4% across recent quarters, indicating low earnings consistency.
The gap between operating income and net income in several quarters, including 2026Q2 where net income exceeded operating income, suggests non-operating items, tax effects, or other adjustments are material to reported earnings. Stock-based compensation of roughly $7M to $9M per quarter also weighs on GAAP profitability, which may lead investors to rely on adjusted metrics that are less comparable. Earnings quality therefore appears low until non-operating drivers are clarified.
Razor-Thin Margins Leave Little Cushion
Based on reported figures, MAX net margin of 6.9% in 2026Q3 and a multi-quarter history of near-zero or negative net margins suggest limited tolerance for any traffic cost or carrier pullback shock.
A bear case would emphasize that revenue growth has not consistently translated into net profit, with several quarters of losses in 2025 despite revenue above $250M per quarter. If carriers curtail spending during a hard market cycle, fixed platform costs could compress operating margin quickly, as the 2025Q2 loss illustrates. Investors should monitor whether sequential revenue growth is accompanied by durable margin improvement rather than one-off items.