New York Times — Income Statement, Cash Flows & Balance Sheet
Is The New York Times profitable?
The New York Times is solidly profitable and earnings are growing at an accelerating pace.
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Change (2024→2025) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenues ($M) | $2,426 | $2,586 | $2,825 | +9.2% |
| Operating profit ($M) | $276 | $351 | $432 | +23.0% |
| Operating margin | 11.4% | 13.6% | 15.3% | +1.7 pts |
| Net income ($M) | $232 | $294 | $344 | +17.1% |
| Diluted EPS | $1.40 | $1.77 | $2.09 | +18.1% |
Revenue growth is healthy, but the real story is how much faster profits are growing than revenues — a sign that the business is becoming more efficient at scale. Operating margin has expanded meaningfully over two years.
Two line items worth flagging that make underlying profits look slightly better than they appear.
| Item | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Generative AI litigation costs ($M) | $10.8 | $13.3 | +$2.5M |
| Impairment charges ($M) | $0 | $2.9 | +$2.9M |
These are real cash and non-cash costs, but they are one-time or unusual in nature — the AI litigation relates to the ongoing copyright lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI. Stripping these out, the underlying business is even more profitable than the headline numbers suggest.
Where does The New York Times' revenue come from?
Subscriptions are the dominant and fastest-growing revenue stream, with digital leading the shift.
| Revenue stream | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital-only subscriptions ($M) | $1,255 | $1,434 | +14.3% |
| Print subscriptions ($M) | $534 | $516 | -3.4% |
| Total subscriptions ($M) | $1,788 | $1,951 | +9.1% |
| % of total revenue | 69.2% | 69.1% | Flat |
Digital subscription growth is more than offsetting the steady decline in print, making the overall subscription business structurally sound rather than just treading water.
Advertising is growing again, entirely driven by digital formats.
| Ad revenue | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital advertising ($M) | $342 | $411 | +20.2% |
| Print advertising ($M) | $164 | $155 | -5.5% |
| Total advertising ($M) | $506 | $566 | +11.8% |
Digital advertising now makes up nearly three-quarters of ad revenue and is growing rapidly, more than compensating for the secular decline in print advertising.
Does The New York Times generate cash?
The New York Times is a strong cash generator, and operating cash flow jumped sharply in 2025.
| Cash flow metric | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Change (2024→2025) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating cash flow ($M) | $361 | $411 | $584 | +42.3% |
| Capital expenditures ($M) | $23 | $29 | $34 | +16.6% |
| Free cash flow ($M)* | $338 | $382 | $550 | +44.0% |
*Free cash flow = operating cash flow minus capital expenditures (GAAP basis).
The company converts a high proportion of its profits into actual cash, and the jump in free cash flow well outpaces net income growth — partly helped by a new tax law (the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act") that allowed certain research costs to be deducted immediately rather than spread over five years, reducing cash taxes paid.
The company is returning significant cash to shareholders while also building its investment war chest.
| Capital allocation | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Share repurchases ($M) | $45 | $85 | $165 |
| Dividends paid ($M) | $69 | $83 | $110 |
| Net purchases of marketable securities ($M) | $144 | $289 | $200 |
The Times is simultaneously buying back more stock, raising its dividend, and accumulating a larger pool of invested securities — a sign of a business generating more cash than it immediately needs.
How strong is The New York Times' balance sheet?
The New York Times carries no long-term debt and holds a substantial cash and securities cushion.
| Liquidity metric | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & equivalents ($M) | $199 | $255 | +$56M |
| Short-term marketable securities ($M) | $366 | $387 | +$21M |
| Long-term marketable securities ($M) | $346 | $526 | +$180M |
| Total liquid assets ($M) | $911 | $1,168 | +$257M |
| Long-term debt | $0 | $0 | — |
With over $1.1 billion in cash and investment-grade securities and zero long-term debt, the balance sheet is exceptionally clean. The company also has a $400 million revolving credit facility available but untapped.
A legacy pension obligation remains the most notable liability, though it is manageable.
| Pension metric | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pension benefit obligation ($M) | $1,193 | $1,182 | -$11M |
| Pension plan assets ($M) | $1,098 | $1,092 | -$6M |
| Net unfunded status ($M) | $95 | $90 | -$5M |
The funded portion of the pension (the main plan) is actually slightly overfunded; the shortfall comes entirely from non-qualified plans (executive-level arrangements) that have no separate assets set aside. The overall gap is shrinking gradually and is well within the company's capacity to manage given its cash generation.