#profitability

#profitability

Block ( NYSE: XYZ) has delivered strong momentum in 2025, with shares climbing steadily as the company demonstrates improving profitability and operational leverage. The fintech platform operator behind Square and Cash App has transformed from losses just two years ago to consistent quarterly profits, with Q3 2025 earnings surging 64% year over year. With Wall Street's consensus target at $84, investors are asking whether Block can push to $100 in 2026.

Okta's quarter showed operational maturity. Revenue climbed 12% year over year, but operating cash flow surged 37% to $218 million. Free cash flow reached $211 million. The company turned a $16 million loss into $23 million in operating income. CEO Todd McKinnon highlighted "continued strength with large customers" and adoption of Okta Identity Governance and Auth0 for AI Agents. Large enterprise deals carry higher margins and stickier retention.

It took the Equinox Group-the parent company of luxury gym chain Equinox, Equinox hotels, and Soulcycle-around five years to recover from COVID. But the company has recovered, claiming that 2025 will be a record year from a profitability perspective. This year, it announced big plans for expansion. Harvey Spevak, executive chairman and managing partner of Equinox Group, tells us about the company's plan to open 40 clubs in new markets, its expansion into the Middle East, and the real reason it ditched Kiehl's for Grown Alchemist.

We had retention that was 3-4 times better than other meal delivery services. We had low awareness, lots of room for product innovation, and a seemingly clear path to an IPO. Then the war broke out in Ukraine, and capital markets started to get spooked. All of the sudden, fast-growing, unprofitable consumer businesses were out of vogue. We managed to raise $32mm, not a small sum, but it felt like a failure.

If your firm is not collecting earned revenue, growth will slow, cash flow will tighten, and profitability will suffer. Fortunately, revenue and profit leakage can be minimized with awareness, the right tools (such as 8am Smart Spend), and disciplined financial oversight. In this webinar, Brittany Hoffmann of 8am and fractional CFO Kelley Brubaker explored common sources of profit leakage - along with practical, actionable tactics for improvement.

Ford is considering a drastic move with its F-150 Lightning, which was the best-selling EV pickup on the market last quarter, beating out Tesla's Cybertruck. Ford has had a tumultuous entrance into its more expanded electric vehicle strategy over the past several years. At one point, the company was widely considered to be the most invested legacy automaker in the transition to electrification, but as the company has seen some real backtracking in terms of its sales and demand, it is cooling down its commitment.

What makes the miss particularly jarring is the underlying business strength visible through June. Revenue reached $218.7 million in Q2, up 13.6% year over year. Net income hit $37.0 million with a 15.2% profit margin. Operating margin stood at a healthy 16.3%. The company was printing money. Something shifted between the end of Q2 and the close of Q3, but management commentary on the miss has not yet been fully detailed.

Medicare Advantage enrollment jumped 32% year over year to 106,323 members, the clearest sign that Clover's technology-first model is resonating with both brokers and beneficiaries. Revenue growth of 34% from the prior year quarter underscores how scale is driving top-line expansion. What matters here is that the company achieved this growth during what management called a "3.5 star payment year," meaning reimbursement rates were compressed. That's a meaningful distinction.

Vertex (NASDAQ: VERX) delivered a split result this morning that left investors parsing mixed signals. The tax technology provider beat on earnings per share but missed revenue expectations, landing at $0.17 versus $0.16 estimated and $192.1M versus $195.5M expected. The stock traded near $22.90 at the filing, down sharply from its 52-week high of $60.71 as the market continues to reassess the company's valuation after a brutal 61% decline year-to-date.

Path to Profitability Accelerates What stood out most was the trajectory. Fubo reported a $0.02 EPS beat against expectations for a $0.04 loss, marking the company's first positive annual earnings in years. The loss narrowed dramatically from a $0.16 miss in Q3 2024 to near breakeven this quarter. That's not just operational improvement. That's a company finally executing on its restructuring promises.

Puerto Rico-based Popular Bank is exiting the mortgage business, according to an announcement made last week during the company's third-quarter earnings call. Specifically, as part of our ongoing efforts to improve profitability, we decided to exit the U.S. residential mortgage origination business and to close four underperforming branches in the New York metro area, said Jorge Garcia, Popular's chief financial officer. We will remain focused on areas where we feel we can invest to achieve improved operating leverage.

Intel Corp. shares jumped after the chipmaker returned to profitability and gave an upbeat revenue forecast, suggesting that it's making progress on a long and challenging comeback attempt. Fourth-quarter sales will be roughly $13.3 billion, the company said in a statement Thursday. Though that was just below Wall Street's average estimate, some analysts were still including revenue from a unit that Intel just spun off money that wasn't part of the company's forecast.

Bank payment company GoCardless has recorded its first EBITDA positive quarter on an adjusted basis, operating in the black in the final three months of FY25 (April to June 2025). The result reflects strong cost discipline and a sustained growth trajectory, positioning the company for long-term financial sustainability. This milestone follows strong financial results in FY24, where GoCardless reported a 38% increase in revenue to £127m and a 55% reduction on losses, down to £35m.

"If you can't measure it, you can't manage it." Ral explains how tracking the right business metrics - especially the bottom line, not just revenue - transformed her approach to entrepreneurship. She shares a personal story about learning the difference between making money and making a profit, and how focusing on profitability is essential for real business success.

The shrinking profitability for home flipping is largely due to home prices, which continue to climb nationally, albeit at a slower pace, driving up acquisition costs for investors. "We're seeing very low profit margins from home flipping because of the historically high cost of homes," said Rob Barber, Attom's CEO. "The initial buy-in for properties that are ideal for flipping, often lower priced homes that may need some work, keeps going up."

I'm a farmer and I don't want to turn our farm shop into a tea room - but you've got to strike a balance

In a long-awaited move, StubHub (NYSE:STUB), the leading online ticket resale marketplace, priced its initial public offering (IPO) yesterday at $23.50 per share, valuing the company at $8.6 billion. The offering raised $800 million through the sale of approximately 34 million shares, with an option for underwriters to purchase up to 5.1 million more. This debut on the New York Stock Exchange caps years of delays, including pauses in 2024 amid market volatility from tariffs and earlier in 2025 due to economic uncertainty.

We did not build this company based upon federal tax incentives. And we're going to prove that we're going to be successful in the future.

Netflix is back in the spotlight. After years of questions about saturation and slowing growth, the streaming giant has staged a significant comeback. Investors are paying attention, not just because of its subscriber numbers but also because Netflix is reinventing how it makes money -- and the results are starting to show. Here's why everyone is talking about Netflix today and what it means for long-term investors.

Total net revenues-- Total net revenues were RMB 7.3 billion in the second quarter, up 20% year over year, with games and advertising as the main growth drivers. Games revenue-- Increased 60% year over year to RMB 1.6 billion, propelled by new seasons of the SLG title and celebration events. Advertising revenue-- Grew 20% year over year to RMB 2.4 billion, supported by AI integration, enhanced ad infrastructure, and an increased advertiser base.

"BP is much less interested in telling the public about the number of coffees it sells each year and is now focused on how much oil it can extract," Brooks said, poking at former CEO Bernard Looney.

Google Cloud posted $13.6 billion in Q2 revenue, up 32% year-over-year, driven by growth in core and AI products at a rate significantly higher than Cloud's overall revenue growth.

On average, nearly 60% of the FTSE 100's returns were generated on just 59 days each year - about 16% of the year - which coincided with major global or economic events.

The British Business Bank has reported a pre-tax gain of £144 million, returning to profitability after two years of losses, amidst an increased investment portfolio.

O'Leary stated that Ryanair has doubled its quarterly profits due to strong Easter demand and a surge in fares exceeding 20%. He anticipates continued profitability by controlling costs.

Droege wrote in the email that the company ramped up capacity "too quickly over the past year" on GenAI, leaving other divisions "under-resourced."

Microsoft was able to save more than $500 million last year in its call center alone due to the efficiency of AI tools.