Revenue growth reached 11.1% in 2026Q1, yet gross margins contracted significantly to 41.4% from a 56.8% peak in 2025Q2, suggesting ongoing inefficiencies in data acquisition costs.
| Sales/Revenue | 4.31B | 4.2B | 3.97B | 3.34B | 2.79B |
| Revenue Growth % | - | 5.68% | 18.89% | 19.91% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 2.06B | 1.86B | 1.77B | 1.51B | 1.39B |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 44.35% | 44.6% | 45.24% | 49.78% |
| Gross Profit | 2.25B | 2.34B | 2.2B | 1.83B | 1.4B |
| Gross Margin % | 52.15% | 55.65% | 55.4% | 54.76% | 50.22% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 6.15% | 20.29% | 30.77% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 2.06B | 2.19B | 2.3B | 1.94B | 1.58B |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 52.27% | 57.92% | 58.02% | 56.59% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 1.61B | 1.6B | 1.6B | 1.45B | 1.2B |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 38.05% | 40.31% | 43.38% | 42.97% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 3M | 596.8M | 699.6M | 489.1M | 379.6M |
| Operating Income | 187.2M | 141.8M | -99.8M | -108.7M | -177.6M |
| Operating Margin % | 4.35% | 3.38% | -2.51% | -3.25% | -6.37% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 242.08% | 8.19% | 38.8% | - |
| EBITDA | 824.9M | 774.3M | 496.9M | 352.2M | 123.5M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 19.16% | 18.44% | 12.51% | 10.54% | 4.43% |
| EBITDA Growth % | - | 55.83% | 41.08% | 185.18% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 637.7M | 632.5M | 596.7M | 460.9M | 301.1M |
| EBIT | 175.5M | 119.6M | -279.9M | -219.6M | -146.3M |
| Net Interest Income | -298.7M | -329.4M | -410.6M | -299.5M | -110.5M |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 298.7M | 329.4M | 410.6M | 299.5M | 110.5M |
| Other Income/Expense | -376.9M | -351.6M | -590.7M | -410.4M | -79.2M |
| Pretax Income | -189.7M | -209.8M | -690.5M | -519.1M | -256.8M |
| Pretax Margin % | -4.41% | -5% | -17.38% | -15.54% | -9.22% |
| Income Tax | 137.8M | 135.5M | 113.7M | 51.8M | 40.3M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -72.64% | -64.59% | -16.47% | -9.98% | -15.69% |
| Net Income | -335M | -353.3M | -810.5M | -574.7M | -297.6M |
| Net Margin % | -7.78% | -8.42% | -20.4% | -17.2% | -10.68% |
| Net Income Growth % | - | 56.41% | -41.03% | -93.11% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | -327.5M | -345.3M | -804.2M | -570.9M | -297.1M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 12.5M | -9M | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 238.6M | 237.2M | 238.9M | 247.2M | 1.5M |
| EPS (Diluted) | -1.14 | -1.32 | -3.31 | -2.35 | -1.21 |
| EPS Growth % | - | 60.12% | -40.85% | -94.21% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | -1.32 | -3.31 | -2.35 | -1.21 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 295.04M | 266.92M | 245M | 245M | 245M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 295.04M | 266.92M | 245M | 245M | 245M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | - | - | - |
High Debt Service Burden
According to the latest quarterly filings, NIQ achieved an 11.1% year-over-year revenue growth rate in 2026Q1, suggesting that the company's core subscription-based data services remain resilient despite the ongoing operational complexities associated with the recent GfK merger and broader integration of disparate global retail data assets.
The revenue trajectory appears to be stabilizing as the company moves past the initial phases of its large-scale M&A activity. While the 11.1% growth is encouraging, investors should monitor whether this is driven by organic expansion or the inorganic contribution of acquired entities, as the latter may lack long-term durability.
As reported in the provided financial statements, NIQ's gross margin experienced a significant contraction to 41.4% in 2026Q1 from a peak of 56.8% in 2025Q2, indicating potential inefficiencies in data acquisition costs or shifts in the product mix following recent corporate restructuring efforts.
The sharp decline in gross margin suggests that the cost of maintaining and harmonizing global retail datasets may be scaling faster than anticipated. This compression warrants further investigation into whether the company possesses the pricing power necessary to pass these rising data ingestion costs onto its CPG client base.
Based on the income statement data, NIQ's operating margin of 5.8% in 2026Q1 remains thin, reflecting a high fixed-cost structure where SG&A expenses continue to consume a substantial portion of gross profit, thereby limiting the company's ability to achieve meaningful operating leverage in the current environment.
The inability to consistently scale operating income faster than revenue suggests that the integration of GfK is creating persistent overhead burdens. Until the company can demonstrate a sustained reduction in SG&A as a percentage of revenue, the path to meaningful profitability appears narrow and highly sensitive to volume growth.
As indicated by the reported net loss of $90.1 million in 2026Q1, NIQ's bottom-line performance remains negative, largely driven by significant non-operating expenses and the amortization of intangibles that typically accompany large-scale private equity-backed acquisitions in the information services sector.
The recurring net losses suggest that the company's reported earnings may not be reflective of its underlying cash-generating capability. Analysts should focus on EBITDA-based metrics to better understand the operational health of the business, as the current net income figures are heavily distorted by purchase accounting and interest burdens.
With a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.16, NIQ faces a precarious financial position where high interest expenses may continue to weigh on net margins, potentially limiting the capital available for necessary investments in AI-driven data processing and cloud infrastructure compared to more conservatively capitalized industry peers.
The high leverage profile creates a structural risk that could force management to prioritize debt service over strategic growth initiatives. Investors should monitor whether this financial constraint leads to a loss of competitive edge against more agile, tech-native entrants who are not burdened by similar legacy debt obligations.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying NIQ stock.
For fiscal year 2025, NIQ Global Intelligence Plc (NIQ) reported total revenue of $4.20B. This represents a 50.7% increase compared to $2.79B in 2022.
NIQ Global Intelligence Plc (NIQ) reported a net loss of $353.3M for the fiscal year ending 2025.
NIQ Global Intelligence Plc (NIQ) reported an operating income of $141.8M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 3.4%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
NIQ Global Intelligence Plc (NIQ) generated $2.34B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 55.6%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.