Playboy Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
Rhea-AI Summary
Playboy (NASDAQ: PLBY) reported Q1 2026 revenue of $30.2 million, up 5% year over year, and a net loss of $4.0 million, versus $9.0 million in Q1 2025. Adjusted EBITDA rose to $5.0 million (or $5.8 million excluding litigation expenses).
The company paid down $15 million of senior debt using proceeds from its China joint venture with UTG and expects up to $36 million additional UTG proceeds plus $62 million in JV distributions through 2033. Honey Birdette sales grew 15% with a 57% gross margin.
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Positive
- Q1 2026 revenue grew 5% year over year to $30.2 million
- Direct-to-consumer revenue increased 15% to $18.8 million
- Net loss narrowed 56% to $4.0 million, or $0.03 per share
- Adjusted EBITDA more than doubled to $5.0 million
- $15 million senior debt repaid from UTG joint venture proceeds
- Honey Birdette delivered 15% sales growth and 57% gross margin
Negative
- Company still reported a Q1 2026 net loss of $4.0 million
- Licensing revenue declined 5% year over year to $10.9 million
- Interest expense increased to $2.5 million in Q1 2026
- $3.5 million transaction expenses from the UTG deal impacted results
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
PLBY gained 7.78% while peers showed mixed moves: FNKO up 8.9%, SRM up 32.05%, but JAKK and ESCA down slightly. This points to a more stock-specific reaction to PLBY’s earnings.
Previous Earnings Reports
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28 | Earnings call notice | Neutral | -1.7% | Announced date and details for upcoming Q1 2026 earnings call. |
| Mar 16 | Q4 2025 results | Positive | -1.1% | Reported Q4 2025 profit, higher Adjusted EBITDA and debt reduction. |
| Mar 05 | Earnings call notice | Neutral | -1.1% | Set date and time for Q4 and full-year 2025 earnings call. |
| Feb 24 | Prelim Q4 2025 | Positive | +9.8% | Preliminary Q4 2025 results showed revenue growth and swing to net income. |
| Nov 12 | Q3 2025 results | Positive | +22.1% | Q3 2025 results with revenue growth, positive net income and higher licensing. |
Earnings-related headlines have usually produced positive stock moves for PLBY, with 4 aligned reactions and 1 divergence, and an average move of about 5.58% around such events.
Over recent quarters, PLBY’s earnings news has highlighted improving fundamentals and balance sheet progress. Q3 2025 showed revenue of $29.0M and positive net income, followed by strong Q4 2025 results with revenue of $34.9M, net income of $3.6M, and debt reduction linked to a $122M China JV. Preliminary Q4 numbers on Feb 24, 2026 were also positive and drew a strong market reaction. Today’s Q1 2026 release, with revenue of $30.2M and Adjusted EBITDA of $5.0M, continues that trajectory of operational improvement.
Historical Comparison
In the last five earnings-tagged releases, PLBY’s average move was about 5.58%. Today’s 7.78% gain on Q1 2026 results sits modestly above that typical reaction range.
Earnings updates show a progression from Q3 2025 profitability through strong Q4 2025 metrics and debt reduction, to Q1 2026 revenue of $30.2M with positive Adjusted EBITDA for a fifth consecutive quarter.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement highlights Q1 2026 revenue of $30.2M, a reduced net loss of $4.0M, and Adjusted EBITDA of $5.0M, marking a fifth consecutive quarter of positive Adjusted EBITDA. Management emphasized recurring licensing with nearly $333M in unrecognized future revenue, Honey Birdette’s 15% sales growth at a 57% margin, and further senior debt reduction using UTG proceeds. Investors may watch future quarters for sustained EBITDA, licensing renewals, JV cash inflows, and ongoing cost discipline.
Key Terms
adjusted EBITDA financial
EBITDA financial
non-GAAP financial
depreciation and amortization financial
forward-looking statements regulatory
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Q1 Revenue of
LOS ANGELES, May 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Playboy, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLBY) (the “Company” or “Playboy”), a global pleasure and leisure company connecting consumers with products, content, and experiences that help them lead happier, more fulfilling lives, today announced financial and operational results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026.
Financial Summary
| ($ in millions) | Q1 2026 | Q1 2025 | % Change | |||||
| Revenues | ||||||||
| Operating Expenses | (9)% | |||||||
| Net Loss | (56)% | |||||||
| Adj. EBITDA (non-GAAP) | ||||||||
First Quarter 2026 & Recent Operational Highlights:
- Playboy licensing revenue remains highly predictable and recurring, with approximately
90% of fiscal year 2025 licensing revenue supported by contractual guarantees and almost$333 million in unrecognized future revenue. - Honey Birdette delivered
15% year-over-year sales growth in the first quarter of 2026, with gross margin of57% . - The Company closed its deal with UTG Brands Management Group Limited (“UTG”) for Playboy’s China licensing business on March 20, 2026. At the initial closing, UTG acquired a
16.67% equity interest in a joint venture that manages and licenses Playboy’s licensing business in China, Hong Kong and Macau (the “JV”) in exchange for$15.0 million , which Playboy used to pay down senior secured debt. Playboy also received a$4.0 million brand support payment at the initial closing. - The Company expects to receive the remaining
$30 million of purchase price proceeds for UTG’s acquisition of an additional33.33% equity interest in the JV, along with a further$6 million in brand support payments, by January 2028. In addition, a remaining$62 million in total JV distributions will be paid to Playboy through 2033. - The Company continued to reduce its senior debt, with
$15.0 million paid down in the first quarter of 2026 from the UTG initial closing proceeds and nearly$37 million of additional forthcoming UTG proceeds earmarked for further debt reduction. - Playboy strengthened its leadership team with the appointments of David Miller as President, Media & Brand and Phillip Picardi as Chief Brand Officer and Editor-in-Chief to drive content strategy, digital platform growth, and media monetization.
Management Commentary
Ben Kohn, Chief Executive Officer of Playboy, commented, “Playboy delivered a strong start to 2026, marked by continued revenue growth, a fifth consecutive quarter of positive Adjusted EBITDA, and meaningful progress across each of our strategic pillars. The initial closing of our partnership with UTG enabled us to immediately pay down
“We enter the remainder of 2026 with significant momentum. Our licensing foundation remains highly predictable, anchored by contractual guarantees and almost
“With David Miller and Phillip Picardi in senior leadership roles, a strengthening balance sheet, and a world-class partner in UTG now managing our China business, we are executing from a position of strength. I look forward to continued execution in the months ahead as we work to deliver sustainable, long-term value for my fellow stockholders,” concluded Kohn.
First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
Total revenue was
Direct-to-consumer revenue was
Licensing revenue was
Operating expenses were
Net loss was
Adjusted EBITDA was
Balance Sheet
As of March 31, 2026, the Company had
Conference Call
Management will host an investor conference call at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time on Monday, May 11, 2026 to discuss the Company’s first quarter 2026 financial results, provide a corporate update, and conclude with questions from telephone participants. To participate, please use the following information:
Q1 2026 Earnings Conference Call Details
Date: Monday, May 11, 2026
Time: 5:00 p.m. Eastern time
U.S. Dial-in: 1-877-423-9813
International Dial-in: 1-201-689-8573
Conference ID: 13760265
Webcast: https://viavid.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1760907&tp_key=90cd654f67
Please join at least five minutes before the start of the call to ensure timely participation. A telephone playback of the call will be available through Thursday, June 11, 2026. To listen, please call 1-844-512-2921, using replay pin number 13760265. A webcast replay will be available using the webcast link above.
About Playboy, Inc.
Playboy (Nasdaq: PLBY) is a global pleasure and leisure company, built on one of the most globally recognized brands. By leveraging its iconic intellectual property, Playboy pursues an asset-light model across licensing, digital content, consumer products and experiential offerings, helping consumers worldwide to live more fulfilling lives. To learn more, please visit https://investors.playboy.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company’s actual results may differ from their expectations, estimates, and projections and, consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Words such as “expect”, “estimate”, “project”, “budget”, “forecast”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “plan”, “may”, “will”, “could”, “should”, “believes”, “predicts”, “potential”, “continue”, and similar expressions (or the negative versions of such words or expressions) are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company’s expectations with respect to future performance, growth plans and anticipated financial impacts of its strategic opportunities and corporate transactions.
These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to: (1) the inability to maintain the listing of the Company’s shares of common stock on Nasdaq; (2) the risk that the Company’s completed or proposed transactions disrupt the Company’s current plans and/or operations, including the risk that the Company does not complete any such proposed transactions or achieve the expected benefits from any transactions; (3) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of corporate transactions, commercial collaborations, cost reduction initiatives and proposed transactions, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of the Company to grow and manage growth profitably, and the Company’s ability to retain its key employees; (4) costs related to being a public company, corporate transactions, commercial collaborations and proposed transactions; (5) changes in applicable laws or regulations; (6) the possibility that the Company may be adversely affected by global hostilities, supply chain delays, inflation, interest rates, tariffs, foreign currency exchange rates or other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; (7) risks relating to the uncertainty of the projected financial information of the Company, including changes in the Company’s estimates of cash flows and the fair value of certain of its intangible assets, including goodwill; (8) risks related to the organic and inorganic growth of the Company’s businesses, and the timing of expected business milestones; (9) changing demand or shopping patterns for the Company’s products and services; (10) failure of licensees, suppliers or other third-parties to fulfill their obligations to the Company; (11) the Company’s high concentration of licensing revenue from a small number of licensees; (12) the Company’s ability to comply with the terms of its indebtedness and other obligations; (13) changes in financing markets or the inability of the Company to obtain financing on attractive terms; and (14) other risks and uncertainties indicated from time to time in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, including those under “Risk Factors” therein, and in the Company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive, and readers should not place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date which they were made. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
Investor Relations Contact:
Lucas A. Zimmerman
Managing Director
MZ Group - MZ North America
+1 (949) 259-4987
PLBY@mzgroup.us or investors@playboy.com
Public Relations Contact: press@playboy.com
| Playboy, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) (in thousands, except share and per share amounts) | |||||||
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | ||||||
| Net revenues | $ | 30,236 | $ | 28,875 | |||
| Costs and expenses: | |||||||
| Cost of sales | (9,544 | ) | (9,053 | ) | |||
| Selling and administrative expenses | (23,234 | ) | (25,397 | ) | |||
| Impairments | — | (301 | ) | ||||
| Other operating income (expense), net | 901 | (384 | ) | ||||
| Total operating expense | (31,877 | ) | (35,135 | ) | |||
| Operating loss | (1,641 | ) | (6,260 | ) | |||
| Nonoperating (expense) income: | |||||||
| Interest expense, net | (2,499 | ) | (1,888 | ) | |||
| Other income, net | 1,027 | 202 | |||||
| Total nonoperating expense, net | (1,472 | ) | (1,686 | ) | |||
| Loss before income taxes | (3,113 | ) | (7,946 | ) | |||
| Expense from income taxes | (850 | ) | (1,095 | ) | |||
| Net loss | $ | (3,963 | ) | $ | (9,041 | ) | |
| Net loss per share, basic and diluted | $ | (0.03 | ) | $ | (0.10 | ) | |
| Weighted-average shares outstanding, basic and diluted | 114,184,037 | 92,653,367 | |||||
Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation
This press release presents the financial measure earnings (net income or loss) before interest, income tax expense or benefit, and depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”). “Adjusted EBITDA” is defined as EBITDA adjusted for stock-based compensation and other special items determined by management. Adjusted EBITDA is intended as a supplemental measure of the Company’s performance that is neither required by, nor presented in accordance with, GAAP. The Company believes that the use of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA provides an additional tool for investors to use in evaluating ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing our financial measures with those of comparable companies, which may present similar non-GAAP financial measures to investors. However, investors should be aware that when evaluating EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, the Company may incur future expenses similar to those excluded when calculating these measures. In addition, the Company’s presentation of these measures should not be construed as an inference that its future results will be unaffected by unusual or nonrecurring items. The Company’s computation of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures computed by other companies, because not all companies calculate Adjusted EBITDA in the same fashion.
In addition to adjusting for non-cash stock-based compensation, non-cash charges for the fair value remeasurements of certain liabilities, non-recurring non-cash impairments and asset write-downs, the Company typically adjusts for non-operating expenses and income, such as nonrecurring special projects, including related consulting expenses, transition expenses, settlements, nonrecurring gain or loss on the sale of assets, expenses associated with financing activities, and reorganization and severance expenses that result from the elimination or rightsizing of specific business activities or operations.
Because of these limitations, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for performance measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. The Company compensates for these limitations by relying primarily on our GAAP results and using EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA on a supplemental basis. Investors should review the reconciliation of net loss to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA below and not rely on any single financial measure to evaluate the Company’s business.
The following table reconciles the Company’s net loss to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA:
| GAAP Net Loss to Adjusted EBITDA Reconciliation (in thousands) | |||||||
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | ||||||
| Net loss | $ | (3,963 | ) | $ | (9,041 | ) | |
| Adjusted for: | |||||||
| Interest expense | 2,499 | 1,888 | |||||
| Expense from income taxes | 850 | 1,095 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 945 | 804 | |||||
| EBITDA | 331 | (5,254 | ) | ||||
| Adjusted for: | |||||||
| Transaction expenses | 3,474 | — | |||||
| Stock-based compensation | 1,169 | 687 | |||||
| Transition expenses | — | 3,830 | |||||
| Severance | 67 | 2,271 | |||||
| Impairments | — | 301 | |||||
| Adjustments | (25 | ) | 542 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 5,016 | $ | 2,377 | |||
