Shutterstock Q2 Revenue Up 21 Percent

Key Points

• - Revenue (GAAP) reached $267.0 million for Q2 2025, beating expectations and setting a quarterly record.

• - Adjusted earnings per share jumped to $1.19 for Q2 2025, exceeding analyst estimates.

• - Subscriber count soared following the Envato acquisition, but average revenue per customer fell sharply.

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Shutterstock (NYSE:SSTK), a leading provider of licensed digital content and creative tools, released its second quarter 2025 financial results on July 29, 2025. The company posted its highest-ever quarterly revenue, driven largely by recent acquisitions and continued growth in its data and services segment. Most notably, GAAP revenue of $267.0 million outpaced analyst expectations of $250.4 million, while adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.19 (non-GAAP) was well above the anticipated $0.56. These results marked a robust quarter for Shutterstock, with strong operational performance but also some cautionary signals around cash flow and changing customer mix.

Source: Analyst estimates for the quarter provided by FactSet.

Shutterstock’s Business and Key Success Factors

Shutterstock focuses on licensing digital content, including images, music, footage, and 3D models. It enables businesses and creative professionals to access, customize, and distribute visual assets through its platform. The company's recent growth strategy centers on expanding its content library and technological capabilities, often through strategic acquisitions and partnerships.

The company’s ability to deliver a broad and high-quality library of content remains central to its competitive positioning. Recent moves, including acquiring Envato (a creative content marketplace) and Backgrid (a celebrity photo agency), help support content and subscriber growth. Another notable focus is technology: Shutterstock continues to invest in proprietary search, artificial intelligence-driven discovery, and integrated workflow tools, aiming to provide a seamless experience for customers and contributors alike.

Highlights from the Quarter

This period featured strong revenue and profit growth, propelled by both core operations and recent acquisitions. Content revenue (GAAP) reached $199.8 million, up 18% year-over-year, while the Data, Distribution, and Services segment posted an even sharper 34% gain to $67.2 million.

The company’s adjusted EBITDA—a measure of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, adjusted for certain expenses—climbed 32% year over year, benefiting from both Envato's immediate contribution and professional fee add-backs to adjusted net income. Net income (GAAP) surged to $29.4 million, well above last year’s $3.6 million, due in part to one-time items, such as an $18.0 million unrealized gain on the company’s investment in Meitu.

The sharp rise in subscribers, which more than doubled to 1,073,000, includes the counts and revenues from Envato. Paid downloads, an indicator of platform usage and sales, reached 112.6 million.

Not all metrics advanced in tandem. Adjusted free cash flow—a non-GAAP measure of the money left over after operating and capital expenses—fell from $36.2 million in Q2 2024 to $17.5 million. These expenses, as well as higher interest costs, are consequences of the company’s recent acquisition spree and ongoing preparations for the proposed merger with Getty Images.

Shutterstock paid a dividend of $0.33 per share, totaling $11.6 million, and declared a similar payout for the next quarter. There were no new share repurchases in the period.

Looking Ahead: Guidance, Merger Update, and Watchpoints

Shutterstock did not issue formal financial guidance for the upcoming quarters, citing its pending merger with Getty Images. Management stated, “in light of the pending transaction with Getty Images, Shutterstock will not be hosting a conference call or providing financial guidance in conjunction with its second quarter 2025 results.” This merger, approved by shareholders in June, aims to create a stronger player in the digital content market and is still awaiting regulatory clearance and satisfaction of other conditions.

With financial visibility reduced due to the merger process, investors will closely follow updates on regulatory progress, merger expenses, and the performance of newly integrated subscribers and business lines. The sharp decline in adjusted free cash flow, the impact of non-recurring gains, and persistent changes in customer mix are all important trends to monitor as the company moves toward its combination with Getty Images, as evidenced by a decrease of $18.7 million in adjusted free cash flow compared to the prior year.

SSTK pays a regular quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share.

Revenue and net income presented using U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) unless otherwise noted.

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JesterAI is a Foolish AI, based on a variety of Large Language Models (LLMs) and proprietary Motley Fool systems. All articles published by JesterAI are reviewed by our editorial team, and The Motley Fool takes ultimate responsibility for the content of this article. JesterAI cannot own stocks and so it has no positions in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Shutterstock. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.