Cardlytics (CDLX) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $59.09M
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 1.94M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): ―
• Beta (1Y): 2.31
• Revenue Growth: -12.84%
• EPS Growth: 5.09%
• Country: US
• Employees: 440
• Sector: Communication Services
• Sector Strength: 87
• Industry: Advertising Agencies
• EPS (TTM): -0.18
• Shares Outstanding: 53,236,900
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 1,446,802
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,939,449
• PEG Ratio: N/A
• Price to Book (P/B): N/A
• Price to Sales (P/S): N/A
• P/FCF Ratio: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 4.41
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 0.98
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 2.24
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: -1.78
• 1Y Price Target: $1.50
• Price Target Upside: 35.14% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Hold
• Number of Analyst Covering: 5

• Rating: 38 Underperform
• Price Target: $1.00 ▼(-9.91% Downside)

Cardlytics' overall stock score is heavily impacted by its poor financial performance and weak technical indicators. The company's high leverage and negative profitability are major concerns, while bearish technical signals suggest continued downward pressure. Valuation metrics further reflect the company's financial struggles, with a negative P/E ratio and no dividend yield. Despite some positive developments in the earnings call, the overall outlook remains cautious.

Positive Factors

Adoption of Pricing Model

The adoption of engagement-based pricing increased to 61% of advertisers, up from 51% last quarter, with 90%+ new brands adopting this model in Q4, showing improved visibility.

Campaign Delivery and Cost Management

CDLX made continued progress in Q4 on campaign delivery issues and drove higher than expected pipeline wins, helping to offset anticipated spend reductions from key accounts in the restaurant and travel verticals; along with strong OpEx discipline, revenue upside resulted in a relatively strong Q4 EBITDA beat.

International Growth

CDLX signed 45 logos in the quarter and saw good growth internationally as UK revenue grew 29%.

Negative Factors

Bank of America Relationship

Questions around the future of the Bank of America relationship and concerns about the strength of the balance sheet keep the recommendation on hold.

Content Restrictions

The 3Q guide was well below consensus due to content restrictions at CDLX's largest financial institution partner.

Outlook and Guidance

Q1 guidance was below the street as billings are expected to be down, although sequential growth is anticipated throughout 2025.

Cardlytics Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Cardlytics, Inc. is a technology company that operates in the digital advertising sector, specializing in transaction-based marketing. The company provides a platform that connects brands with consumers through financial institutions' digital banking channels. Its core services include targeted marketing solutions that leverage purchase data to deliver relevant offers to consumers, thereby driving customer engagement and sales for advertisers. Cardlytics primarily serves banks and credit unions, enabling them to provide valuable offers to their customers while helping brands reach their target audiences more effectively.

How the Company Makes Money

Cardlytics generates revenue primarily through a performance-based advertising model. The company's main revenue streams include: 1) Advertising Fees: Cardlytics earns fees from advertisers based on the performance of their campaigns, typically measured by the number of transactions generated from the offers presented to consumers. This performance-based model aligns the company's interests with those of its clients, as it is compensated when consumers engage with offers and make purchases. 2) Partnerships with Financial Institutions: The company has formed strategic partnerships with various banks and credit unions, which serve as distribution channels for its marketing solutions. These partnerships allow Cardlytics to access a large consumer base and enhance the effectiveness of its advertising campaigns. 3) Data Insights: Cardlytics also monetizes its extensive purchase data by providing insights and analytics to advertisers about consumer behavior and trends, which helps them optimize their marketing strategies. Overall, the combination of performance-based fees, strategic partnerships, and data-driven insights contributes significantly to Cardlytics' revenue generation.

Cardlytics Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Cardlytics is facing considerable financial challenges with declining revenues and persistent losses. High leverage and negative equity returns highlight the financial risk. Despite some improvements in operating cash flow, the company needs to address profitability issues and manage its debt more effectively to improve its financial health.

Income Statement

Cardlytics has experienced declining revenue over the recent period, with a revenue decrease of 2.05% from the previous year. The company's gross profit margin remains relatively stable at 42.68% for TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months), but net profit margin is significantly negative at -65.43%, indicating ongoing challenges in achieving profitability. EBIT and EBITDA margins are also negative, highlighting operational inefficiencies.

Balance Sheet

The company exhibits a high debt-to-equity ratio of 3.44, indicating significant leverage and potential risk if revenues continue to decline. Return on equity is negative at -278.25% due to ongoing net losses. The equity ratio is low at 17.36%, suggesting limited equity cushion and a reliance on liabilities for financing.

Cash Flow

While Cardlytics has managed to improve its operating cash flow, turning positive in the TTM period, free cash flow remains negative. The free cash flow to net income ratio is low, indicating limited conversion of accounting profits to cash. The operating cash flow to net income ratio is positive but reflects the company's struggle to generate cash consistently.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement
Total Revenue	266.20M	278.30M	309.20M	298.54M	267.12M	186.89M
Gross Profit	116.32M	120.89M	130.38M	112.63M	103.34M	63.27M
EBITDA	-146.64M	-152.53M	-99.00M	-418.98M	-89.91M	-39.51M
Net Income	-183.34M	-189.30M	-134.70M	-465.26M	-128.56M	-58.47M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	361.13M	392.71M	574.14M	691.24M	1.26B	422.54M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	46.74M	65.59M	91.83M	121.91M	233.47M	293.24M
Total Debt	220.41M	221.65M	266.11M	235.26M	197.23M	188.12M
Total Liabilities	302.43M	322.72M	439.35M	479.63M	573.10M	265.35M
Stockholders Equity	58.71M	69.99M	134.80M	211.60M	690.70M	157.19M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	-10.81M	-28.12M	-12.58M	-67.39M	-51.09M	-17.71M
Operating Cash Flow	-1.12M	-8.82M	-185.00K	-53.90M	-38.52M	-7.60M
Investing Cash Flow	-17.90M	-18.75M	-10.06M	-15.76M	-506.69M	-10.12M
Financing Cash Flow	-5.68M	1.44M	-20.03M	-39.99M	486.00M	206.43M

Cardlytics Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Negative
• Last Price: 1.11
• 50DMA: Negative
• 100DMA: Negative
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CDLX, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 1.11 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 1.50, below the 50-day MA of 1.73, and below the 200-day MA of 2.50, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.24 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 36.48 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 23.15 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for CDLX.

Cardlytics Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
DLX	71 Outperform	$899.95M	15.62	9.20%	5.99%	-1.92%	49.63%
Sector *	60 Neutral	$43.36B	3.95	-13.01%	4.03%	1.89%	-42.25%
TSQ	54 Neutral	$113.31M	3.42	74.55%	11.54%	-0.11%	―
MCHX	46 Neutral	$85.71M	―	-13.93%	―	-2.64%	6.48%
INUV	44 Neutral	$52.69M	―	-36.41%	―	21.45%	41.21%
FLNT	43 Neutral	$44.65M	―	-115.36%	―	-12.84%	63.95%
CDLX	38 Underperform	$59.09M	―	-136.44%	―	-12.84%	5.09%

Cardlytics Corporate Events

Cardlytics Extends Agreement with JPMorgan Chase

On July 7, 2025, Cardlytics, Inc. announced the extension of its Master Agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank until November 18, 2028, through a Fourth Amendment. This amendment includes changes to Supplier Billings Share, Incentive Bonus, and Quality Credits, with a notable reduction in Supplier Billings Share starting January 1, 2026, although it remains higher than the level before the Third Amendment.

Cardlytics Annual Meeting Approves Key Proposals

On May 20, 2025, Cardlytics held its Annual Meeting where stockholders voted on several key proposals. The election of three board nominees, the ratification of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the independent auditor, the approval of the 2025 Equity Incentive Plan, and the advisory approval of executive compensation were all passed with majority votes. This meeting reflects the company’s ongoing governance and strategic planning efforts, potentially impacting its operational and financial strategies moving forward.