Trustpilot: Shares spike as review site benefits from snowballing user and business adoption
Review platform Trustpilot has reported a double-digit increase in revenue and earnings as business adoption and brand awareness “fuel the flywheel”.
Its share price rose more than 13 per cent in early trades.
The company told markets this morning that revenue rose 19 per cent in the year ended December 31, to $210m (£161m) from $176m (£135) last year.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 55 per cent to $24.1m (£18.6m), supported by operating leverage in general and administrative expenses.
Trustpilot will continue its share buyback programme by up to £20m this year, adding to the £33m in buybacks in 2024.
Bookings, which refer to the annual value of contracts signed or renewed with Trustpilot, rose 26 per cent year on year to $239m (£184m).
Although it is free for users, Trustpilot operates a freemium model for businesses where firms can pay to show Trustpilot reviews on their website.
Trustpilot ‘reaping the benefits of scale’
Trustpilot said the growth in business adoption and brand awareness is “fuelling the flywheel” and supporting bookings by businesses.
“The new product features such as market insights and review spotlight have been well received, and we are encouraged by the number of customers moving up onto higher plans,” the company said.
Consumer adoption continued to grow, with a 23 per cent increase in reviews on the platform to 301m.
Fiona Orford-Williams, Director of TMT at Edison Group, said: “Trustpilot’s full year results were as signalled in its January update… in excess of what the market was then forecasting.
“Trustpilot has continued to innovate to drive additional value for its customers through AI-driven insights.
“The outlook for the current year is… a further good step up in margins as the [business] reaps the benefits of scale.”
The company expects constant currency revenue growth in the high teens this year, with adjusted EBITDA slightly ahead of market expectations and a 2 percentage point improvement in adjusted EBITDA margin.
“Our strategy is clear: we operate an open, trusted platform for consumers to help each other make the right choices, and for businesses to build trust, grow, and improve,” CEO Adrian Blair said, adding that he wanted to maximise the platform’s “inherent network effects”.
“We executed well against this in 2024, delivering record bookings, profitability and cash generation, returning $42.9m (£33m) of capital to shareholders through two share buybacks.
“We refreshed our go-to-market approach by simplifying our packages and updating our pricing. Product innovation is at the heart of our offering and in April we introduced new features which provide unique insights into consumer behaviour and market dynamics.
“Looking forward, we will continue to deliver product innovation to embed trust across commerce, as trust becomes even more important in the age of AI.”