The company has demonstrated resilience in its core scientific content business, achieving a 25.3% operating margin in 2026Q4 despite a volatile revenue growth trajectory that only recently turned positive at 1.2% year-over-year.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (WLYB) annual income statement — 30-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Apr'26 | Apr'25 | Apr'24 | Apr'23 | Apr'22 | Apr'21 | Apr'20 | Apr'19 | Apr'18 | Apr'17 | Apr'16 | Apr'15 | Apr'14 | Apr'13 | Apr'12 | Apr'11 | Apr'10 | Apr'09 | Apr'08 | Apr'07 | Apr'06 | Apr'05 | Apr'04 | Apr'03 | Apr'02 | Apr'01 | Apr'00 | Apr'99 | Apr'98 | Apr'97 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 1.67B | 1.68B | 1.68B | 1.87B | 2.02B | 2.08B | 1.94B | 1.83B | 1.8B | 1.8B | 1.72B | 1.73B | 1.82B | 1.78B | 1.76B | 1.78B | 1.74B | 1.7B | 1.61B | 1.67B | 1.23B | 1.04B | 974.05M | 922.96M | 853.97M | 734.4M | 613.79M | 594.82M | 508.4M | 467.1M | 432M |
| Revenue Growth % | -0.27% | -0.06% | -10.43% | -7.27% | -3.03% | 7.28% | 6.01% | 1.75% | 0.22% | 4.51% | -0.49% | -5.23% | 2.66% | 0.82% | -1.23% | 2.31% | 2.56% | 5.44% | -3.72% | 35.53% | 18.27% | 7.2% | 5.54% | 8.08% | 16.28% | 19.65% | 3.19% | 17% | 8.84% | 8.13% | 19.11% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 492.63M | 484.56M | 431.38M | 579.72M | 692.54M | 700.66M | 625.34M | 591.02M | 554.72M | 485.22M | 460.76M | 465.92M | 499.68M | 506.88M | 532.23M | 543.4M | 539.04M | 534M | 516.42M | 536.85M | 420.95M | 342.31M | 325.06M | 308.9M | 288.93M | 243.2M | 185.6M | 158.22M | 142.9M | 134.8M | 129.1M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 28.9% | 25.71% | 30.95% | 34.29% | 33.64% | 32.21% | 32.27% | 30.82% | 27.02% | 26.81% | 26.98% | 27.42% | 28.55% | 30.23% | 30.48% | 30.93% | 31.43% | 32.05% | 32.08% | 34.09% | 32.78% | 33.37% | 33.47% | 33.83% | 33.12% | 30.24% | 26.6% | 28.11% | 28.86% | 29.88% |
| Gross Profit | 1.17B | 1.19B | 1.25B | 1.29B | 1.33B | 1.38B | 1.32B | 1.24B | 1.25B | 1.31B | 1.26B | 1.26B | 1.32B | 1.27B | 1.23B | 1.24B | 1.2B | 1.17B | 1.09B | 1.14B | 813.98M | 701.87M | 648.99M | 614.06M | 565.05M | 491.2M | 428.19M | 436.6M | 365.5M | 332.3M | 302.9M |
| Gross Margin % | 70.43% | 71.1% | 74.29% | 69.05% | 65.71% | 66.36% | 67.79% | 67.73% | 69.18% | 72.98% | 73.19% | 73.02% | 72.58% | 71.45% | 69.77% | 69.52% | 69.07% | 68.57% | 67.95% | 67.92% | 65.91% | 67.22% | 66.63% | 66.53% | 66.17% | 66.88% | 69.76% | 73.4% | 71.89% | 71.14% | 70.12% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -4.35% | -3.64% | -2.57% | -3.97% | 5.02% | 6.1% | -0.39% | -5% | 4.22% | -0.27% | -4.66% | 4.29% | 3.24% | -0.87% | 2.98% | 3.3% | 6.4% | -3.69% | 39.67% | 15.97% | 8.15% | 5.69% | 8.67% | 15.03% | 14.71% | -1.93% | 19.45% | 9.99% | 9.71% | 17.18% |
| Operating Expenses | 877.86M | 895.91M | 1.02B | 1.24B | 1.12B | 1.16B | 1.1B | 1.06B | 1.02B | 1.04B | 1.04B | 1.04B | 1.06B | 1.01B | 975.13M | 958.93M | 955.36M | 907.35M | 876.49M | 913.89M | 652.71M | 549.19M | 507.61M | 484.68M | 444.79M | 403.44M | 332.77M | 347.59M | 301.9M | 291.4M | 268.1M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 53.44% | 61.09% | 66.26% | 55.56% | 55.9% | 56.52% | 57.87% | 56.57% | 58.06% | 60.42% | 60.47% | 57.96% | 57.13% | 55.38% | 53.79% | 54.83% | 53.4% | 54.39% | 54.6% | 52.85% | 52.6% | 52.11% | 52.51% | 52.08% | 54.93% | 54.22% | 58.44% | 59.38% | 62.38% | 62.06% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 0 | 0 | 947.44M | 1.01B | 1.09B | 1.13B | 1.07B | 1.05B | 1.01B | 983.57M | 967.5M | 994.37M | 1B | 969.46M | 933.15M | 922.18M | 910.85M | 872.19M | 839.65M | 874.91M | 632.03M | 535.69M | 496.73M | 474.9M | 432.7M | 373.46M | 301.47M | 294.43M | 261.4M | 250M | 233.8M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | - | 56.48% | 54.11% | 53.74% | 54.26% | 54.96% | 57.52% | 56.03% | 54.76% | 56.3% | 57.58% | 55.15% | 54.61% | 53% | 51.73% | 52.27% | 51.33% | 52.11% | 52.27% | 51.18% | 51.3% | 51% | 51.45% | 50.67% | 50.85% | 49.12% | 49.5% | 51.42% | 53.52% | 54.12% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32.37M | 35.16M | 34.37M | 38.82M | 37.08M | 41.43M | 40.21M | 39.66M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | 1.6% | 1.69% | 1.77% | 2.12% | 2.06% | 2.31% | 2.34% | 2.3% | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 4M | 895.91M | 77.38M | 227.48M | 84.88M | 84.84M | 108M | 62.44M | 54.66M | 48.23M | 49.67M | 49.76M | 51.21M | 44.68M | 41.98M | 36.75M | 44.51M | 35.16M | 36.84M | 38.98M | 20.68M | 13.5M | 10.88M | 9.78M | 12.09M | 29.97M | 31.3M | 53.17M | 40.5M | 41.4M | 34.3M |
| Operating Income | 292.56M | 296.06M | 221.41M | 52.26M | 208.96M | 219.28M | 185.51M | 194.05M | 223.99M | 239.53M | 206.15M | 188.11M | 237.74M | 206.67M | 199.43M | 280.42M | 248.15M | 242.59M | 218.48M | 222.99M | 161.28M | 152.68M | 141.38M | 129.38M | 120.26M | 87.76M | 95.42M | 89M | 63.6M | 40.9M | 34.8M |
| Operating Margin % | 17.56% | 17.66% | 13.2% | 2.79% | 10.35% | 10.53% | 9.55% | 10.6% | 12.44% | 13.34% | 12% | 10.89% | 13.05% | 11.64% | 11.33% | 15.73% | 14.24% | 14.28% | 13.56% | 13.32% | 13.06% | 14.62% | 14.51% | 14.02% | 14.08% | 11.95% | 15.55% | 14.96% | 12.51% | 8.76% | 8.06% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 33.72% | 323.66% | -74.99% | -4.7% | 18.2% | -4.4% | -13.37% | -6.49% | 16.19% | 9.59% | -20.87% | 15.03% | 3.63% | -28.88% | 13% | 2.29% | 11.04% | -2.02% | 38.26% | 5.63% | 7.99% | 9.28% | 7.58% | 37.03% | -8.03% | 7.21% | 39.94% | 55.5% | 17.53% | 5.45% |
| EBITDA | 436.91M | 442.31M | 369.62M | 229.25M | 426.72M | 439.65M | 390.8M | 373.38M | 385.14M | 393.52M | 362.71M | 343.96M | 351.02M | 309.67M | 297.43M | 367.57M | 329.23M | 318.03M | 290.46M | 338.91M | 249.6M | 234.68M | 219.74M | 200.75M | 183.22M | 147.09M | 149.31M | 142.17M | 104.1M | 82.3M | 69.1M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 26.22% | 26.38% | 22.03% | 12.24% | 21.13% | 21.11% | 20.13% | 20.39% | 21.4% | 21.91% | 21.11% | 19.92% | 19.26% | 17.44% | 16.89% | 20.62% | 18.89% | 18.72% | 18.03% | 20.25% | 20.21% | 22.48% | 22.56% | 21.75% | 21.46% | 20.03% | 24.33% | 23.9% | 20.48% | 17.62% | 16% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 16.57% | 19.67% | 61.23% | -46.28% | -2.94% | 12.5% | 4.67% | -3.06% | -2.13% | 8.49% | 5.45% | -2.01% | 13.35% | 4.12% | -19.08% | 11.64% | 3.52% | 9.49% | -14.3% | 35.78% | 6.36% | 6.8% | 9.46% | 9.56% | 24.57% | -1.49% | 5.02% | 36.57% | 26.49% | 19.1% | 15.17% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 144.35M | 146.25M | 148.21M | 176.99M | 217.75M | 220.37M | 205.29M | 179.33M | 161.16M | 153.99M | 156.56M | 155.85M | 113.29M | 103M | 98M | 87.15M | 81.08M | 75.44M | 71.98M | 115.92M | 88.32M | 82M | 78.35M | 71.37M | 62.96M | 59.32M | 53.88M | 53.17M | 40.5M | 41.4M | 34.3M |
| EBIT | 283.21M | 296.06M | 195.43M | -138.04M | 75.84M | 225.26M | 190.59M | -38.13M | 229.07M | 227.21M | 208.05M | 191.5M | 242.54M | 209.45M | 200M | 280.33M | 248.38M | 232.54M | 212.9M | 228.34M | 161.28M | 152.68M | 141.38M | 129.38M | 120.26M | 87.76M | 95.42M | 89M | 63.65M | 40.9M | 34.8M |
| Net Interest Income | -46.73M | -43.85M | -52.55M | -49M | -37.74M | -19.8M | -18.38M | -11.98M | -9.72M | -4.71M | -14.36M | -13.79M | -14.02M | -11.13M | -10.46M | -6.06M | -14.9M | -31.5M | -42.24M | -60.82M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.38M | 11.1M | 8.56M | 1.48M | 2.91M | 3.06M | 2.79M | 2.61M | 2.98M | 2.42M | 834K | 6.18M | 5.35M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 46.73M | 43.85M | 52.55M | 49M | 37.74M | 19.8M | 18.38M | 25.36M | 20.82M | 13.27M | 15.84M | 16.71M | 17.08M | 13.92M | 13.08M | 9.04M | 17.32M | 32.33M | 48.42M | 61.46M | 21.78M | 8.84M | 5.72M | 4.27M | 7.7M | 6.64M | 5.2M | 6.37M | 1.6M | 0 | 4M |
| Other Income/Expense | -110.8M | -80.98M | -78.53M | -239.31M | -22.79M | -9.62M | -9.6M | -257.14M | -11.04M | -25.6M | -20.35M | -41.93M | -12.28M | -11.14M | -12.51M | -8.32M | -17.09M | -42.38M | -54M | -61.46M | -21.78M | -8.84M | -5.72M | -4.27M | -7.7M | -6.64M | -5.2M | -6.37M | -1.61M | 17.2M | -4M |
| Pretax Income | 184.8M | 215.09M | 142.88M | -187.05M | 33.1M | 209.66M | 175.91M | -63.09M | 212.95M | 213.93M | 191.12M | 174.79M | 225.46M | 195.53M | 186.92M | 272.1M | 231.06M | 200.21M | 164.47M | 161.53M | 139.5M | 143.84M | 135.66M | 125.11M | 112.56M | 81.12M | 90.23M | 82.63M | 62M | 58.1M | 30.8M |
| Pretax Margin % | 11.09% | 12.83% | 8.52% | -9.99% | 1.64% | 10.07% | 9.06% | -3.44% | 11.83% | 11.91% | 11.12% | 10.12% | 12.37% | 11.01% | 10.62% | 15.26% | 13.26% | 11.78% | 10.21% | 9.65% | 11.3% | 13.78% | 13.93% | 13.56% | 13.18% | 11.05% | 14.7% | 13.89% | 12.2% | 12.44% | 7.13% |
| Income Tax | -13.39M | -6.53M | 58.72M | 13.27M | 15.87M | 61.35M | 27.66M | 11.2M | 44.69M | 21.75M | 77.47M | 29.01M | 48.59M | 35.02M | 42.7M | 59.35M | 59.17M | 56.67M | 36.22M | 13.99M | 39.88M | 33.52M | 51.82M | 36.27M | 25.28M | 23.8M | 31.31M | 30.24M | 22.3M | 21.5M | 10.5M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | -7.24% | -3.04% | 41.1% | -7.1% | 47.94% | 29.26% | 15.72% | -17.74% | 20.99% | 10.16% | 40.54% | 16.6% | 21.55% | 17.91% | 22.84% | 21.81% | 25.61% | 28.3% | 22.02% | 8.66% | 28.59% | 23.3% | 38.2% | 28.99% | 22.46% | 29.34% | 34.7% | 36.6% | 35.97% | 37.01% | 34.09% |
| Net Income | 198.19M | 221.62M | 84.16M | -200.32M | 17.23M | 148.31M | 148.26M | -74.29M | 168.26M | 192.19M | 113.64M | 145.78M | 176.87M | 160.51M | 144.22M | 212.75M | 171.89M | 143.54M | 128.26M | 147.54M | 99.62M | 110.33M | 83.84M | 88.84M | 87.28M | 57.32M | 58.92M | 52.39M | 39.7M | 36.6M | 20.3M |
| Net Margin % | 11.9% | 13.22% | 5.02% | -10.7% | 0.85% | 7.12% | 7.64% | -4.06% | 9.35% | 10.7% | 6.61% | 8.44% | 9.71% | 9.04% | 8.19% | 11.93% | 9.86% | 8.45% | 7.96% | 8.81% | 8.07% | 10.57% | 8.61% | 9.63% | 10.22% | 7.8% | 9.6% | 8.81% | 7.81% | 7.84% | 4.7% |
| Net Income Growth % | 103.7% | 163.33% | 142.01% | -1262.42% | -88.38% | 0.04% | 299.57% | -144.15% | -12.45% | 69.11% | -22.05% | -17.58% | 10.19% | 11.29% | -32.21% | 23.77% | 19.75% | 11.92% | -13.07% | 48.1% | -9.71% | 31.59% | -5.63% | 1.79% | 52.27% | -2.72% | 12.46% | 31.96% | 8.47% | 80.3% | -17.81% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 198.19M | 221.62M | 84.16M | -200.32M | 17.23M | 148.31M | 148.26M | -74.29M | 168.26M | 192.19M | 113.64M | 145.78M | 176.87M | 160.51M | 144.22M | 212.75M | 171.89M | 143.54M | 128.26M | 147.54M | 99.62M | 110.33M | 83.84M | 88.84M | 87.28M | 57.32M | 58.92M | 52.39M | 39.71M | 36.6M | 20.3M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 3.91 | 4.16 | 1.53 | -3.65 | 0.31 | 2.62 | 2.63 | -1.32 | 2.91 | 3.32 | 1.95 | 2.48 | 2.97 | 2.70 | 2.39 | 3.47 | 2.80 | 2.39 | 2.15 | 2.49 | 1.71 | 1.85 | 1.35 | 1.41 | 1.38 | 0.91 | 0.93 | 0.81 | 0.60 | 0.55 | 0.31 |
| EPS Growth % | 112.36% | 171.9% | 141.92% | -1277.42% | -88.17% | -0.38% | 299.24% | -145.36% | -12.35% | 70.26% | -21.37% | -16.5% | 10% | 12.97% | -31.12% | 23.93% | 17.15% | 11.16% | -13.65% | 45.61% | -7.57% | 37.04% | -4.26% | 2.17% | 51.65% | -2.15% | 14.81% | 35% | 9.09% | 77.42% | -18.42% |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 4.22 | 1.56 | -3.65 | 0.31 | 2.66 | 2.65 | -1.32 | 2.94 | 3.35 | 1.99 | 2.53 | 3.01 | 2.72 | 2.46 | 3.57 | 2.83 | 2.39 | 2.20 | 2.55 | 1.75 | 1.90 | 1.38 | 1.44 | 1.42 | 0.94 | 0.97 | 0.85 | 0.63 | 0.58 | 0.31 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 50.75M | 53.25M | 54.83M | 54.95M | 56.35M | 56.6M | 56.46M | 56.21M | 57.84M | 57.89M | 58.2M | 58.73M | 59.59M | 59.51M | 60.22M | 61.27M | 61.36M | 59.68M | 59.61M | 59.32M | 58.29M | 59.79M | 62.09M | 63.23M | 63.24M | 62.98M | 63.35M | 64.68M | 66.18M | 66.55M | 65.48M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 50.75M | 52.47M | 54.05M | 54.95M | 55.56M | 55.76M | 55.93M | 56.21M | 57.19M | 57.41M | 57.17M | 57.56M | 58.84M | 59.05M | 58.67M | 59.52M | 60.71M | 58.31M | 58.42M | 57.92M | 56.93M | 58.07M | 60.72M | 61.77M | 61.46M | 60.97M | 60.74M | 61.63M | 63.03M | 63.1M | 65.48M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 33.55% | 90.42% | - | 448.55% | 52.06% | 51.9% | - | 45.02% | 38.27% | 62.96% | 47.95% | 38.73% | 36.73% | 39.82% | 22.68% | 22.55% | 22.98% | 23.76% | 17.36% | 22.93% | 19.13% | 21.62% | 18.31% | 14.14% | 19.22% | 16.51% | 16.43% | 19.79% | 19.13% | 30.54% |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying WLYB stock.
For fiscal year 2026, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (WLYB) reported total revenue of $1.68B. This represents a 288.1% increase compared to $432.0M in 1997.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (WLYB) is profitable, generating $221.6M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2026 with a net profit margin of 13.2%.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (WLYB) reported an operating income of $296.1M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 17.7%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (WLYB) generated $1.19B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 71.1%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Open Access transition volatility
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Revenue Growth Remains Highly Volatile
As reported in recent financial statements, WLYB's revenue trajectory remains inconsistent, with the most recent quarter showing a modest 1.2% year-over-year growth following a prolonged period of contraction, suggesting that the company's transition toward digital-first publishing models has yet to yield a stable, predictable growth profile.
The fluctuation in quarterly revenue figures indicates that the company is still navigating the structural shift from traditional subscription bundles to transactional Open Access models. Investors should monitor whether the recent return to positive growth is a sustainable trend or merely a temporary recovery from previous divestiture-related headwinds.
Gross Margin Resilience Amid Transformation
Based on reported figures, WLYB has maintained robust gross margins, peaking at 74.9% in recent periods, which underscores the inherent pricing power of its proprietary scientific content despite the ongoing operational restructuring and the broader industry-wide shift toward lower-margin digital delivery and open access publishing formats.
The ability to sustain gross margins above 70% suggests that the core Research Publishing segment retains significant competitive advantages in content curation and peer-review prestige. However, the divergence between these high gross margins and lower operating margins warrants further investigation into the efficiency of the company's administrative and sales infrastructure.
Operating Leverage Scaling Through Restructuring
According to recent SEC filings, WLYB's operating income has shown significant improvement, reaching 25.3% in 2026Q4, which suggests that the company's recent 'back-to-basics' restructuring efforts are successfully reducing the overhead burden that previously constrained profitability during the integration of various non-core education services and talent assets.
The expansion of operating margins from the mid-single digits to over 25% in the most recent quarter implies that management is effectively streamlining the cost base following the divestiture of underperforming units. This trend suggests that the company may be entering a phase of improved operational efficiency, provided that the current expense discipline is maintained.
Earnings Quality Impacted by Volatility
As indicated by the data, WLYB's net income has experienced extreme quarterly variance, including a $113.9M loss in 2024Q3 and a $135.3M profit in 2026Q4, which highlights the significant impact of non-operating items, restructuring charges, and potential impairment of goodwill on the company's reported GAAP earnings.
The high volatility in EPS suggests that headline figures may not accurately reflect the underlying cash-generating capability of the core business. Investors should look past these accounting fluctuations to assess the normalized earning power, particularly as the company moves away from the capital-intensive and often value-destructive acquisitions of the past.
Structural Risks to Subscription Revenue
Based on an analysis of the income statement, the primary risk to WLYB's narrative is the potential for long-term margin compression as the shift toward Open Access mandates forces a transition from high-margin subscription bundles to more competitive, volume-dependent article processing charges that may lack similar pricing power.
Short-term improvements in operating margins could be misleading if they are driven by temporary cost-cutting rather than sustainable revenue growth in the Research segment. The market may be underestimating the risk that regulatory mandates for open access could permanently erode the 'toll-bridge' economics that have historically supported the company's valuation.