Criteo S.A. (CRTO) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Access earnings results, analyst expectations, report, slides, earnings call, and transcript.
Overview
The earnings call presents mixed signals: strong financial metrics but weak guidance, especially due to client softness in the U.S. This is balanced by optimistic long-term growth strategies and partnerships, like ChatGPT, which could drive future growth. The Q&A reveals execution challenges rather than structural issues, but the lack of clarity on some key metrics tempers enthusiasm. Given the market cap and the nature of these updates, the stock is likely to remain relatively stable over the next two weeks, resulting in a neutral sentiment.
Key Financial Performance
Media Spend Surpassed $1 billion for the first time in Q1 2026.
Revenue $425 million in Q1 2026, with a year-over-year tailwind from foreign currencies of $9 million.
Contribution ex-TAC $250 million in Q1 2026, down 9% year-over-year at constant currency due to a $27 million headwind from scope changes with 2 Retail Media clients. Excluding this impact, it grew 1%.
Performance Media Revenue $383 million in Q1 2026, with contribution ex-TAC of $210 million, down 2% at constant currency. Mixed performance in Commerce growth and softer demand in specific verticals like travel in Europe and reduced budgets from large U.S. clients.
Retail Media Revenue $41 million in Q1 2026, with contribution ex-TAC also at $41 million. Excluding a $27 million headwind, contribution ex-TAC grew 24% year-over-year.
Adjusted EBITDA $65 million in Q1 2026, reflecting lower top line and planned growth investments, partially offset by lower-than-expected RSU social charges and onetime tax refunds.
Net Income $9 million in Q1 2026, with diluted earnings per share of $0.15 compared to $0.66 last year.
Adjusted Diluted EPS $0.73 in Q1 2026 compared to $1.10 last year.
Operating Cash Flow $48 million in Q1 2026.
Free Cash Flow $16 million in Q1 2026, reflecting planned higher CapEx and improved working capital.
Total Liquidity $889 million as of the end of March 2026.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Operating Highlights
Agentic AI Roadmap: Advanced the roadmap, including partnership with OpenAI and increasing adoption of MCP with agencies.
Criteo GO: Launched as an AI-powered self-service offering with new capabilities like Page Intelligence to improve product discovery and monetization.
Conversational Ads: Developing interactive shopping experiences with tailored product recommendations, particularly in the travel vertical.
Retail Media Innovations: Introduced auction-based display and shoppable video formats, improving monetization efficiency and driving higher yields for retailers.
OpenAI Partnership: Became OpenAI's first ad tech partner, integrating demand into ChatGPT's advertising offering.
International Expansion: Momentum with over 1,000 brands live, strong agency traction, and early expansion across international markets.
Retail Media Growth: Expanded partnerships with DoorDash in Canada and Hyundai department store in Asia Pacific.
Self-Service Expansion: GO self-service offering launched, with 2/3 of campaigns from small clients now running through it in the U.S.
AI Integration: Integrated ChatGPT into self-service platform, enabling advertisers to test and scale AI-native media.
Efficiency Improvements: AI deployment improving efficiency, streamlining execution, and enabling better resource allocation.
Agentic AI Leadership: Positioned to lead in Agentic AI, focusing on relevance, trust, and high-quality data.
Full Funnel Strategy: Introducing Discovery audiences in GO to connect upper funnel engagement to lower funnel performance.
Corporate Structure Optimization: Redomiciliation to Luxembourg on track, with plans for subsequent redomiciliation to the U.S. by 2027.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Risk or Challenges
Performance Media Trends: Softer demand in specific verticals, particularly travel in Europe, and reduced budgets from certain large U.S. clients, primarily driven by client-specific decisions.
Macroeconomic Environment: Volatile macro environment, including slower travel growth in Europe, softness in discretionary retail due to inflation and weaker consumer sentiment, and slower adoption of newer products.
Retail Media Client Scope Reductions: Previously communicated scope reductions with two Retail Media clients, resulting in a $27 million headwind in Q1 and a $75 million client scope reduction impact for 2026.
Geopolitical Tensions: Geopolitical tensions indirectly impacting performance, including slower travel growth in Europe and broader effects on consumer sentiment.
U.S. Client-Specific Dynamics: Reduced budgets from certain large enterprise performance media clients in the U.S., contributing to a more cautious outlook.
Foreign Exchange Rate Headwinds: Unfavorable foreign exchange rates impacting costs and financial performance.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Guidance & Outlook
Agentic AI Initiatives: Criteo is advancing its Agentic AI roadmap, including a partnership with OpenAI and the launch of Criteo GO, an AI-powered self-service offering. The company is integrating ChatGPT into its platform to enable advertisers to test and scale AI-native media. AI-driven commerce is expected to emerge as a significant growth driver, with conversational ads and sponsored recommendations being key innovations.
Retail Media Growth: Retail Media revenue is expected to return to growth in Q4 2026, with underlying growth accelerating in 2026 compared to 2025. The company is focusing on unlocking greater demand, scaling high-performing formats, and introducing AI-driven optimization layers like Page Intelligence.
Performance Media Trends: Performance Media contribution ex-TAC is expected to be flat to up low single digits in 2026, with a focus on scaling self-service, expanding cross-channel activation, and extending further up the funnel. Near-term trends reflect softer demand in specific verticals and reduced budgets from certain large U.S. clients.
Financial Guidance for 2026: Contribution ex-TAC is expected to decline by low single digits at constant currency, with adjusted EBITDA margins anticipated to remain at 32%-34%. The company expects a return to growth in Q4 2026 and reacceleration into 2027. CapEx for 2026 is projected at approximately $190 million, with operational cash flow conversion improving to 85%.
Market Trends and Opportunities: AI-powered ad buying is projected to grow from $35 billion in 2025 to over $140 billion by 2030. Criteo is positioning itself to capture this growth through innovations in AI-driven commerce and expanding its addressable market, particularly among small- and medium-sized businesses.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Shareholder Return Plan
Share Buyback Program: Criteo has committed to returning capital to shareholders through its share buyback program. In Q1 2026, the company deployed $31 million to repurchase 1.6 million shares. Additionally, in April, Criteo canceled a total of 1.9 million shares, increasing its capacity for further share repurchases. As of the end of March, $190 million remained under the current authorized share repurchase program.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Key Q&A
Q:Are the majority of macro headwinds outside of retargeting or spread across the whole performance business?
A:The slowdown with U.S. clients is across the Performance Media segment at large, not just retargeting. There is no common denominator in these decisions other than the need to build a stronger pipeline and execute better with large U.S. clients.
Q:What do clients need to see to adopt newer tools more meaningfully?
A:Clients need tighter feedback loops, continuous improvements in customer experience, and strategic engagement to adopt newer tools. The company is focusing on early adoption and improving customer experience with self-service products like GO.
Q:How is success defined for the ChatGPT partnership, and what milestones should investors watch?
A:Success is currently defined by client count, with 1,000 clients live as of now. The company expects this number to scale as additional markets open. Key milestones include scaling client count, developing data management feeds, and integrating cross-channel setups.
Q:What are the assumptions for travel in Europe for the rest of the year, given its softer performance?
A:Travel in Europe is expected to grow more conservatively, with a prudent approach due to macro uncertainties. Growth in the Middle East and other regions is anticipated but at a slower pace compared to last year.
Q:How does the company view new device types and multimodal search as opportunities?
A:The company sees new device types and multimodal search as natural opportunities. They are focused on enabling relevance, outcomes, and measurement consistently across surfaces, and these are baked into their strategy.
Q:How has the pipeline of client engagements changed with the 1,000 clients milestone for Agentic?
A:The pipeline has become increasingly incremental, with new business traction and net new clients being added. The company aims to cross-sell these clients into their cross-channel setup and other products.
Q:What is the level of confidence that large client softness is a sales execution issue and not structural?
A:The company is confident that the issue is not structural. They have not lost any clients and believe the softness is due to the need for closer engagement with clients and better pipeline conversion.
Q:Has the GO self-service rollout been a material new customer driver?
A:It is too early to determine the material impact of the GO self-service rollout. The company is focused on smooth onboarding and customer retention to ensure product-market fit.
Q:When did the macro impacts affecting the full-year guidance start to appear?
A:The macro impacts started to appear within Q1, particularly in March and April, affecting Asia Pacific, Europe, and large U.S. clients.
Q:What happens to customers that churn off the platform?
A:There is no common destination for churned customers. The company aims to be present across all channels to capture budgets wherever they move.
Q:How many large U.S. clients are experiencing softness, and how does this affect the guidance?
A:A small number of extra-large U.S. clients are experiencing softness, which has impacted the guidance. The rest of the client base remains resilient.
Q:Is there a first-mover advantage with ChatGPT, and how does it affect budgets?
A:Yes, there is a first-mover advantage in terms of time to market and technical readiness. The budgets are incremental for Criteo, even as they move past test budgets, as they represent discovery or performance-oriented channels.
Q:What is the business model for the OpenAI partnership, and how might it affect retail media?
A:The business model involves both data and placements, similar to other partners. OpenAI's products are seen as complementary to retail media, providing high-intent traffic that retailers can optimize for organic and paid objectives.
Q:What impacted take rates across retail and Performance Media?
A:Take rates were stable for Performance Media but declined for Retail Media due to a specific client impact. The underlying take rate for other clients remains at the high end of the 10%-15% range.
Q:What is the pipeline for expanding retail media networks?
A:The pipeline includes both net new retailers and growth within the existing base. New products like conquesting, display, and Page Intelligence are driving growth.
Q:Review of Unclear Management Responses
A:Management avoided providing specific details on the contribution of the GO self-service rollout to the guidance for Q2 and the back half of the year, citing that it is too early to determine its impact. Additionally, they did not provide clarity on the exact number of large U.S. clients experiencing softness or the specific reasons behind their reduced spending.
You have reached the limit. Sign up to access full content
Get started
Earnings Word Cloud
The most frequently occurring keywords in this quarter's earning call
AI commerce
AI optimization
AI platform
Agentic AI
ChatGPT
Discovery
MCP
Media focus
OpenAI
Retail Media
activation
advantage
agency share
ambition
bar
budget client
client self
creation
decision
discipline
discovery channel
ecosystem value
efficiency
engagement
environment
example
experience user
friction client
funnel consumer
layer
need
onboarding
phase
position
progress
redomiciliation
retailer AI
retailer monetization
service offering
spend funnel
support
surface
track
transition
trust
user product
CRTO Transcript
Criteo S.A. (CRTO) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Unknown5-11
The earnings call presents mixed signals: strong financial metrics but weak guidance, especially due to client softness in the U.S. This is balanced by optimistic long-term growth strategies and partnerships, like ChatGPT, which could drive future growth. The Q&A reveals execution challenges rather than structural issues, but the lack of clarity on some key metrics tempers enthusiasm. Given the market cap and the nature of these updates, the stock is likely to remain relatively stable over the next two weeks, resulting in a neutral sentiment.
Criteo S.A. (CRTO) Presents at Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference 2026 Transcript
Neutral3-5
Criteo S.A. (CRTO) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Unknown2-11
The earnings call summary reflects a mixed outlook. While there are strong financial metrics like adjusted EPS growth and no long-term debt, there are concerns about declining revenue in certain segments and lower take rates. The Q&A reveals uncertainties regarding department store exposure and AI monetization. Despite optimistic future guidance and AI initiatives, the company's market cap suggests moderate stock price sensitivity, leading to a neutral prediction.
Criteo S.A. (CRTO) Q3 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive10-29
The earnings call highlights strong financial performance, with significant net income and free cash flow growth. The Google partnership is a promising growth lever, and Retail Media trends are positive. Although some responses lacked specificity, the overall sentiment from the Q&A was optimistic, with a focus on strategic growth areas like AI and CTV. The market cap indicates a moderate reaction, leading to a positive stock price prediction.
CRTO Report
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does this earnings call transcript come from?
All transcripts are sourced directly from the official live webcast or the company’s official investor relations website. We use the exact words spoken during the call with no paraphrasing of the core discussion.
How soon is the transcript available after the earnings call ends?
Full verbatim transcripts are typically published within 4–12 hours after the call ends. Same-day availability is guaranteed for all S&P 500 and most mid-cap companies.
Is the transcript edited or altered in any way?
No material content is ever changed or summarized in the “Full Transcript” section. We only correct obvious spoken typos (e.g., “um”, “ah”, repeated 10 times”, or clear misspoken ticker symbols) and add speaker names/titles for readability. Every substantive sentence remains 100% as spoken.
Why do some answers appear as “Unclear” or “Inaudible”?
When audio quality is poor or multiple speakers talk over each other, we mark the section instead of guessing. This ensures complete accuracy rather than introducing potential errors.
Who creates the AI Summary and Key Q&A highlights shown above the transcript?
They are generated by a specialized financial-language model trained exclusively on 15+ years of earnings transcripts. The model extracts financial figures, guidance, and tone with 97%+ accuracy and is regularly validated against human analysts. The full raw transcript always remains available for verification.
