DoubleVerify Holdings, Inc.: Form 10-Q for the period ended Mar 31, 2024

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this Quarterly Report and our audited financial statements and notes contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. In addition to our historical condensed consolidated financial information, the following discussion contains forward-looking statements that reflect our plans, estimates, and beliefs. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to these differences include those discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report, including under the heading “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”

Company Overview

We are one of the industry’s leading media effectiveness platforms that leverages AI to drive superior outcomes for global brands. By creating more effective, transparent ad transactions, we make the digital advertising ecosystem stronger, safer and more secure, thereby preserving the fair value exchange between buyers and sellers of digital media.

Our software platform is integrated across the entire digital advertising ecosystem, including programmatic platforms, social media channels, and digital publishers. We deliver unique data analytics through our customer interface, DV Pinnacle, to provide detailed insights into our customers’ media performance on both direct and programmatic media buying platforms and across all key digital media channels, formats, and devices. In 2023, our coverage spanned 110 countries where our customers activate our services. Our customers include many of the largest global advertisers and digital ad platforms and publishers. We provide a consistent, cross-platform measurement standard across all major forms of digital media, making it easier for advertisers and supply-side customers to benchmark performance across all of their digital ads and optimize business outcomes in real-time.

We derive revenue primarily from our advertiser customers based on the volume of media transactions, or ads, that our software platform measures (“Media Transactions Measured”). Advertisers utilize the DV Authentic Ad, our definitive metric of digital media quality, to evaluate the existence of fraud, brand safety, viewability and geography for each digital ad. Advertisers pay us an analysis fee (“Measured Transaction Fee”) per thousand impressions based on the volume of Media Transactions Measured on their behalf. The price of most of our solutions is fixed. On platforms that charge based on percent of media spend, our pricing includes caps which effectively mirror our standard fixed fees. We maintain an expansive set of direct integrations across the entire digital advertising ecosystem, including with leading programmatic, CTV, and social platforms, which enable us to deliver our metrics to the platforms where our customers buy ads. Further, our services are not reliant on any single source of impressions and we can service our customers as their digital advertising needs change.

We generate revenue from supply-side customers based on monthly or annual contracts with minimum guarantees and tiered pricing when guarantees are met.

Components of Our Results of Operations

We manage our business operations and report our financial results in a single segment.

Revenue

Our customers use our solutions to measure the effectiveness of their digital advertisements. We generate revenue from our advertising customers based on the volume of Media Transactions Measured on our software platform, and for supply-side customers, based on contracts with minimum guarantees or contracts that have tiered pricing after minimum guarantees are achieved. Our existing customer base has remained largely stable, and our gross revenue retention rate was over 95% for the three months ended March 31, 2024. We define our gross revenue retention rate as the total prior period revenue earned from advertiser customers, less the portion of prior period revenue attributable to lost advertiser customers, divided by the total prior period revenue from advertiser customers, excluding a portion of our revenues that cannot be allocated to specific advertiser customers.

For each of the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023, we generated 91% of our revenue from advertiser customers. Advertisers can purchase our services to measure the quality and performance of ads after they are purchased directly from digital properties, including publishers and social media platforms, which we track as Measurement revenue. Advertisers can also purchase our services through programmatic and social media platforms to evaluate the quality of ad inventories before they are purchased, which we track as Activation revenue. We generate the majority of our revenue from advertisers by charging a Measured Transaction Fee based on the volume of Media Transactions Measured on behalf of our customers. We recognize revenue from advertisers in the period in which we provide our measurement and activation solutions.

For each of the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023, we generated 9% of our revenue from supply-side customers who use our data analytics to validate the quality of their ad inventory and provide data to their customers to facilitate targeting and purchasing of digital ads, which we refer to as Supply-side revenue. We generate revenue for certain supply-side arrangements that include minimum guaranteed fees that reset monthly and are recognized on a straight-line basis over the access period, which is usually twelve months. For contracts that contain overages, once the minimum guaranteed amount is achieved, overages are recognized as earned over time based on a tiered pricing structure.

The following table disaggregates revenue between advertiser customers, where revenue is generated based on number of ads measured for Measurement or measured and purchased for Activation, and Supply-side customers.

(In Thousands)

Operating Expenses

Our operating expenses consist of the following categories:

Cost of revenue. Cost of revenue consists primarily of costs from revenue-sharing arrangements with our partners, platform hosting fees, data center costs, software and other technology expenses, other costs directly associated with data infrastructure, and personnel costs, including salaries, bonuses, stock-based compensation and benefits, directly associated with the support and delivery of our software platform and data solutions.

Product development. Product development expenses consist primarily of personnel costs, including salaries, bonuses, stock-based compensation and benefits, third party vendors and outsourced engineering services, and allocated overhead. Overhead costs such as information technology infrastructure, rent and occupancy charges are allocated based on headcount. Product development expenses are expensed as incurred, except to the extent that such costs are associated with software development that qualifies for capitalization, which are then recorded as capitalized software development costs included in Property, plant and equipment, net on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. Capitalized software development costs are amortized to depreciation and amortization.

Sales, marketing, and customer support. Sales, marketing, and customer support expenses consist primarily of personnel costs directly associated with sales, marketing, and customer support departments, including salaries, bonuses, commissions, stock-based compensation and benefits, and allocated overhead. Overhead costs such as information technology infrastructure, rent and occupancy charges are allocated based on headcount. Sales and marketing expense also includes costs for promotional marketing activities, advertising costs, and attendance at events and trade shows. Sales commissions are expensed as incurred.

General and administrative. General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel expenses associated with our executive, finance, legal, human resources and other administrative employees. General and administrative expenses also include professional fees for external accounting, legal, investor relations and other consulting services, expenses to operate as a public company, including costs to comply with rules and regulations applicable to companies listed on a U.S. securities exchange, costs related to compliance and reporting obligations pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC, other overhead expenses including insurance, as well as third-party costs related to acquisitions.

Interest expense. Interest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023 consists primarily of debt issuance costs, commitment fees associated with the unused portion of the New Revolving Credit Facility, interest on balances that were outstanding under the New Revolving Credit Facility and interest on finance leases. The New Revolving Credit Facility bears interest at SOFR plus an applicable margin per annum. See “Liquidity and Capital Resources—Debt Obligations.”

Other income, net. Other income, net consists primarily of interest earned on interest-bearing monetary assets and gains and losses on foreign currency transactions.

Results of Operations

Comparison of the Three Months Ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023

The following table shows our Condensed Consolidated Results of Operations:

(In Thousands)

The following table sets forth our Condensed Consolidated Results of Operations for the specified periods as a percentage of our revenue for those periods presented:

Note: Percentages may not sum due to rounding.

Revenue

Total revenue increased by $18.2 million, or 15%, from $122.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $140.8 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024.

Total Advertiser revenue increased by $17.3 million, or 16%, in the three months ended March 31, 2024 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, driven primarily by an 18% increase in Media Transactions Measured, partially offset by a 2% decrease in Measured Transaction Fees.

Activation revenue increased by $9.4 million, or 13%, in the three months ended March 31, 2024 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, driven primarily by greater adoption of our Authentic Brand Suitability (ABS) solution as well as our core (non-ABS) programmatic solutions, including Scibids Technology SAS (“Scibids”).

Measurement revenue increased $7.9 million, or 19%, in the three months ended March 31, 2024 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, driven primarily by the increased adoption of our social measurement solutions by existing and new customers both within and outside the United States.

Supply-side revenue increased $0.9 million, or 8%, in the three months ended March 31, 2024 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, driven primarily by increased revenue from platform customers.

Cost of Revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization shown below)

Cost of revenue increased by $2.7 million, or 11%, from $24.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $26.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The increase was primarily due to growth in our Activation revenue which drove increases in partner costs from revenue-sharing arrangements, as well as continued investments in cloud services to provide scale and flexibility necessary to support future growth.

Product Development Expenses

Product development expenses increased by $7.8 million, or 27%, from $28.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $36.4 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The increase was primarily due to an increase in personnel costs, including stock-based compensation, of $6.3 million, and an increase in third-party software costs and professional fees of $1.2 million primarily to support product development efforts.

Sales, Marketing and Customer Support Expenses

Sales, marketing and customer support expenses increased by $12.2 million, or 47%, from $25.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $37.9 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The increase was primarily due to an increase in personnel costs, including stock-based compensation and sales commissions, of $9.7 million, an increase in marketing activities, including advertising, promotions, events and other activities of $0.2 million, and an increase in personnel travel and entertainment expenses to support marketing and sales activities of $0.8 million.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses increased by $1.9 million, or 9%, from $20.2 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $22.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The increase was primarily due to an increase in personnel costs, including stock-based compensation, of $2.7 million, partially offset by a reduction in general corporate insurance costs of $0.7 million.

Depreciation and Amortization

Depreciation and amortization increased by $1.9 million, or 22%, from $9.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023, to $10.9 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The increase was primarily due to an increase in intangible assets related to the acquisition of Scibids.

Interest Expense

Interest expense decreased by less than $0.1 million, from $0.3 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to $0.2 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024.

Other Income, Net

Other income, net decreased by $0.5 million, from income of $2.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to income of $2.3 million in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The decrease was primarily due to an increase in losses from changes in foreign exchange rates, partially offset by an increase in interest earned on interest-bearing monetary assets.

Income Tax Expense

Income tax expense decreased by $3.7 million from a $5.5 million expense in the three months ended March 31, 2023 to a $1.8 million expense in the three months ended March 31, 2024. The decrease was primarily due to a decrease in pre-tax book income and permanent book-to-tax income adjustments.

Adjusted EBITDA

In addition to our results determined in accordance with GAAP, management believes that certain non-GAAP financial measures, including Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin, are useful in evaluating our business. We calculate Adjusted EBITDA Margin as Adjusted EBITDA divided by total revenue. The following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, to the most directly comparable financial measure prepared in accordance with GAAP.

(In Thousands)

(a) M&A and restructuring costs for the three months ended March 31, 2024 consist of transaction costs related to the acquisition of Scibids.

(b) Offering and secondary offering costs for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023 consist of third-party costs incurred for underwritten secondary public offerings by certain stockholders of the Company.

(c) Other recoveries for the three months ended March 31, 2023 consist of sublease income for leased office space.

(d) Other income for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023 consist of interest income earned on interest-bearing monetary assets, and the impact of changes in foreign currency exchange rates.

We use Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin as measures of operational efficiency to understand and evaluate our core business operations. We believe that these non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors for period to period comparisons of our core business and for understanding and evaluating trends in operating results on a consistent basis by excluding items that we do not believe are indicative of our core operating performance.

These non-GAAP financial measures have limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation or as substitutes for an analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Some of the limitations of these measures are:

• they do not reflect changes in, or cash requirements for, working capital needs;
• Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect capital expenditures or future requirements for capital expenditures or contractual commitments;
• they do not reflect income tax expense or the cash requirements to pay income taxes;
• they do not reflect interest expense or the cash requirements necessary to service interest or principal debt payments; and
• although depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges related mainly to intangible assets, certain assets being depreciated and amortized will have to be replaced in the future, and Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect any cash requirements for such replacements.

In addition, other companies in our industry may calculate these non-GAAP financial measures differently, therefore limiting their usefulness as a comparative measure. You should compensate for these limitations by relying primarily on our GAAP results and using the non-GAAP financial measures only supplementally.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our operations are financed primarily through cash generated from operations. As of March 31, 2024, we had cash and cash equivalents of $302.0 million and net working capital, consisting of current assets (excluding cash) less current liabilities, of $172.9 million.

We believe existing cash and cash generated from operations, together with the $150.0 million undrawn balance under the New Revolving Credit Facility as of March 31, 2024, will be sufficient to meet working capital and capital expenditure requirements on a short-term and long-term basis.

Total future capital requirements and the adequacy of available funds will depend on many factors, including those discussed above as well as the risks and uncertainties set forth under “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Debt Obligations

As of March 31, 2024, there was no outstanding debt under the New Revolving Credit Facility.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

(In Thousands)

Operating Activities

Our cash flows from operating activities are primarily influenced by growth in our operations and by changes in our working capital. In particular, trade receivables increase in conjunction with our rapid growth in sales and decrease based on timing of cash receipts from our customers. The timing of payments of trade payables also impacts our cash flows from operating activities. We typically pay suppliers in advance of collections from our customers. Our collection and payment cycles can vary from period to period.

For the three months ended March 31, 2024, cash provided by operating activities was $31.8 million, attributable to net income of $7.2 million, adjusted for non-cash charges of $30.5 million and $5.9 million use of cash from changes in operating assets and liabilities. Non-cash charges primarily consisted of $10.9 million in depreciation and amortization and $20.2 million in stock-based compensation, offset by $4.0 million in deferred taxes. The main drivers of the changes in operating assets and liabilities were a $4.4 million decrease in trade receivables, prepaid assets and other assets, and a $10.3 million decrease in trade payables, accrued expenses and other liabilities primarily related to the timing of payments for accrued expenses.

For the three months ended March 31, 2023, cash provided by operating activities was $21.4 million, attributable to net income of $12.2 million, adjusted for non-cash charges of $18.4 million and $9.2 million use of cash from changes in operating assets and liabilities. Non-cash charges primarily consisted of $9.0 million in depreciation and amortization and $11.8 million in stock-based compensation. The main drivers of the changes in operating assets and liabilities were a $14.9 million increase in trade receivables, prepaid assets and other assets due mainly to an increase in sales and the timing of collections, and a $5.7 million increase in trade payables and accrued expenses primarily related to the timing of vendor payments.

Investing Activities

For the three months ended March 31, 2024, cash used in investing activities was $38.6 million, including $32.2 million attributable to investments in short-term financial instruments and $6.4 million attributable to purchases of property, plant and equipment, and capitalized software development costs. For the three months ended March 31, 2023, cash used in investing activities of $4.1 million was attributable to purchases of property, plant and equipment, and capitalized software development costs.

Financing Activities

For the three months ended March 31, 2024, cash used in financing activities of $0.9 million was primarily due to $1.7 million proceeds from common stock issued upon exercise of stock options, offset by $1.8 million related to shares repurchased for settlement of employee tax withholding and $0.8 million related to finance lease payments. For the three months ended March 31, 2023, cash provided by financing activities of $0.5 million was primarily due to $1.8 million proceeds from common stock issued upon exercise of stock options, offset by $0.8 million of shares repurchased for settlement of employee tax withholding and by $0.5 million of finance lease payments.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, which have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions for the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and related disclosures at the dates of the financial statements, and revenue and expenses during the reporting periods. Our estimates are based on our historical experience and on various other factors that we believe are reasonable for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We evaluate these estimates on an ongoing basis. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions, and any such differences may be material.

Some of the judgments that management makes in applying its accounting estimates in these areas are discussed in Note 2 to our audited Consolidated Financial Statements appearing in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. Since the date of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, there have been no material changes to our critical accounting policies and estimates.

Market risks at March 31, 2024 have not materially changed from those discussed in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 under the heading “Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.”

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act, as of March 31, 2024. Our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in the reports we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported as and when required, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to allow timely decisions regarding its required disclosure. Based on this evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of March 31, 2024.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended March 31, 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Limitations on the Effectiveness of Controls and Procedures

Management recognizes that a control system, no matter how well designed and implemented, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud or error, if any, have been detected. The inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty and that breakdowns can occur because of simple errors or mistakes. Additionally, controls can also be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people, or by management override of the controls. The design of any system of controls also is based in part upon certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goal under all potential future conditions. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. Because of the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected.

There have been no material changes to the risk factors described in the section titled “Risk Factors” in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.