StubHub's revenue growth has decelerated sharply from a 60.5% surge in 2024Q4 to -1.4% in 2025Q4, while its 80%+ gross margin is consistently consumed by SG&A expenses that represent 60-70% of revenue, leaving operating margins highly volatile and often negative.
StubHub Holdings, Inc. (STUB) annual income statement — 7-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 1.94B | 1.75B | 1.77B | 1.37B | 1.04B | 672.79M | 35.64M | 211.63M |
| Revenue Growth % | 7.87% | -1.44% | 29.46% | 31.93% | 54.09% | 1787.68% | -83.16% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 377.36M | 339.59M | 334.1M | 231.87M | 185.62M | 89.02M | 227.03M | 47.66M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 19.46% | 18.87% | 16.95% | 17.9% | 13.23% | 636.98% | 22.52% |
| Gross Profit | 1.56B | 1.41B | 1.44B | 1.14B | 851.1M | 583.77M | -191.38M | 163.98M |
| Gross Margin % | 80.51% | 80.54% | 81.13% | 83.05% | 82.1% | 86.77% | -536.98% | 77.48% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -2.15% | 26.47% | 33.46% | 45.79% | 405.02% | -216.71% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 2.83B | 2.69B | 1.3B | 882.62M | 1.07B | 967.71M | 337.41M | 186.09M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 153.93% | 73.33% | 64.53% | 103.07% | 143.84% | 946.7% | 87.93% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 2.83B | 2.69B | 1.21B | 793.25M | 910.54M | 698.32M | 337.41M | 186.09M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 153.93% | 68.59% | 58% | 87.83% | 103.79% | 946.7% | 87.93% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 0 | 0 | 83.98M | 89.36M | 157.98M | 269.39M | 0 | 0 |
| Operating Income | -1.27B | -1.28B | 138.06M | 253.23M | -217.42M | -383.94M | -528.8M | -22.12M |
| Operating Margin % | -65.55% | -73.39% | 7.8% | 18.52% | -20.97% | -57.07% | -1483.67% | -10.45% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | -1027.69% | -45.48% | 216.47% | 43.37% | 27.39% | -2290.79% | - |
| EBITDA | -1.24B | -1.26B | 162.59M | 275.99M | -132.37M | -160.85M | -335.97M | -21.75M |
| EBITDA Margin % | -63.97% | -71.92% | 9.18% | 20.18% | -12.77% | -23.91% | -942.65% | -10.28% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -659.97% | -871.97% | -41.09% | 308.49% | 17.7% | 52.12% | -1444.34% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 30.56M | 25.6M | 24.53M | 22.75M | 85.05M | 223.09M | 192.82M | 363K |
| EBIT | -1.29B | -1.41B | 217.04M | 241.54M | -128.76M | -474.9M | -810.39M | -48.89M |
| Net Interest Income | -37.64M | -97.62M | -138.66M | -133.43M | -116.9M | -135.21M | -74.75M | 678K |
| Interest Income | 46.51M | 42.41M | 41.12M | 22.51M | 2.81M | 165K | 1.15M | 4.42M |
| Interest Expense | 84.14M | 140.03M | 179.78M | 155.94M | 119.71M | 135.37M | 75.91M | 3.74M |
| Other Income/Expense | -116.43M | -264.6M | -100.8M | -167.64M | -31.05M | -226.33M | -357.5M | -30.52M |
| Pretax Income | -1.39B | -1.55B | 37.26M | 85.6M | -248.47M | -610.27M | -886.29M | -52.63M |
| Pretax Margin % | -71.57% | -88.55% | 2.1% | 6.26% | -23.97% | -90.71% | -2486.72% | -24.87% |
| Income Tax | 381.48M | 360.59M | 40.06M | -319.61M | 12.51M | 19.68M | 24.42M | 9.19M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -27.53% | -23.33% | 107.51% | -373.39% | -5.04% | -3.22% | -2.76% | -17.47% |
| Net Income | -1.77B | -1.91B | -2.8M | 405.2M | -260.99M | -629.95M | -910.71M | -61.83M |
| Net Margin % | -91.27% | -109.21% | -0.16% | 29.63% | -25.17% | -93.63% | -2555.23% | -29.21% |
| Net Income Growth % | -3122.95% | -67969.07% | -100.69% | 255.26% | 58.57% | 30.83% | -1373.02% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | -1.77B | -1.91B | -2.8M | 405.2M | -260.99M | -629.95M | -910.71M | -61.83M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | -4.65 | -5.76 | -0.15 | 1.07 | -0.97 | -2.17 | -2.61 | -0.17 |
| EPS Growth % | -2071.79% | -3740% | -114.02% | 210.31% | 55.3% | 16.86% | -1435.29% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | -5.76 | -0.15 | 1.07 | -0.97 | -2.17 | -2.61 | -0.17 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 380.02M | 346.07M | 325.64M | 329.06M | 329.06M | 329.06M | 367.81M | 367.81M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 380.02M | 346.07M | 325.64M | 329.06M | 329.06M | 329.06M | 367.81M | 367.81M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying STUB stock.
For fiscal year 2025, StubHub Holdings, Inc. (STUB) reported total revenue of $1.75B. This represents a 724.6% increase compared to $211.6M in 2019.
StubHub Holdings, Inc. (STUB) reported a net loss of $1.91B for the fiscal year ending 2025.
StubHub Holdings, Inc. (STUB) reported an operating income of $-1280.7M, resulting in an operating profit margin of -73.4%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
StubHub Holdings, Inc. (STUB) generated $1.41B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 80.5%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Persistent operating losses and negative growth
Growth Momentum Fades After Q4 Surge
After a 60.5% revenue surge in 2024Q4, StubHub's growth has decelerated sharply, turning negative at -1.4% in 2025Q4 and -2.9% in 2025Q2, suggesting the prior quarter's strength was likely driven by a favorable event calendar rather than sustainable organic demand.
The company's revenue trajectory shows significant volatility tied to event timing, with the 2024Q4 peak likely reflecting a concentration of high-demand concerts and sports playoffs. The subsequent reversal into negative year-over-year growth indicates a normalization of transaction volume, raising questions about the durability of the platform's core demand. Investors should monitor whether this deceleration is cyclical, tied to a weaker touring slate, or structural, reflecting market share loss to primary-integrated secondary platforms.
High Gross Margins Mask Structural Profitability Challenge
StubHub maintains a robust gross margin above 80%, yet the -73.4% operating margin in 2025Q4 reveals a massive fixed cost base, likely dominated by marketing and customer acquisition, which appears to be consuming nearly all gross profit dollars.
The persistent gap between gross and operating margins suggests the business model requires significant scale to achieve profitability, as customer acquisition costs appear to be a structural headwind. The 80%+ gross margin is a clear asset, indicating low marginal transaction costs, but the inability to translate this into positive operating income implies that marketing spend is either inefficient or necessary to defend market share against primary sellers. This dynamic warrants close monitoring of SG&A as a percentage of revenue for signs of improving leverage.
Operating Leverage Remains Elusive Despite Scale
Operating income scaled to $41.6M in 2026Q2 on $573M revenue, a 7.3% margin, but this followed a quarter with a -2.9% operating margin, indicating that profitability is highly sensitive to revenue volume and cost timing rather than demonstrating consistent operating leverage.
The company's operating leverage appears weak and inconsistent, with operating income swinging from positive to negative based on quarterly revenue fluctuations. This suggests a cost structure with high fixed components, particularly in SG&A, that does not scale down efficiently during lower-volume periods. The lack of a clear, improving trend in operating margin despite revenue growth indicates that management has not yet found a formula to convert incremental revenue into sustained operating profit.
Net Income Volatility Driven by Non-Operating Items
The -109.2% net margin in 2025Q4, resulting in a $535M net loss, appears to be driven by significant non-operating charges or one-time items, as it is wildly inconsistent with the -2.9% operating margin for the same period, suggesting poor earnings quality.
The extreme divergence between operating and net income in certain quarters, particularly 2025Q4, indicates that reported net income is heavily influenced by non-operational factors such as interest expense, tax adjustments, or impairment charges. This volatility makes it difficult to assess the core business's profitability and suggests that investors should focus on operating metrics rather than bottom-line EPS. The lack of stock-based compensation in recent quarters is a positive for earnings quality, but it does not offset the noise from other non-operating items.
SG&A Dominates Cost Structure, R&D Investment Absent
SG&A expenses consistently consume 60-70% of revenue, dwarfing all other cost categories, while the complete absence of R&D spending suggests a business model focused on marketing-driven growth rather than technological innovation.
The cost structure is heavily skewed toward selling, general, and administrative expenses, which likely include substantial performance marketing and customer support costs. This profile is typical for a marketplace competing for consumer attention but raises concerns about long-term efficiency. The zero R&D line item is notable and may indicate that platform development is either fully capitalized, outsourced, or minimal, which could be a risk if competitors invest heavily in technology to improve the secondary ticketing experience.
Profitability Path Appears Theoretical, Not Demonstrated
Despite a high gross margin, StubHub has posted negative operating income in three of the last ten quarters and a -114.8% ROE, suggesting that the path to sustainable profitability remains unproven and may require a fundamental restructuring of its cost base.
The strongest bear case focuses on the company's inability to convert its structural gross margin advantage into consistent operating profit. The persistent negative returns on equity and the deep operating losses indicate that capital is being consumed without generating returns, which is unsustainable long-term. Furthermore, the -1.4% revenue growth in a high-inflation environment suggests the platform may be losing pricing power or volume, making the already challenging path to profitability even more difficult.