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McGraw Hill, Inc.: Q2 FY2027 earnings call

What management said about Q2 FY2027, from the documents filed with the SEC on 5 November 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 4 kept. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Revenue fell 5.5 percent: Second-quarter revenue was $632.2 million against $669.2 million a year earlier. Year-to-date revenue was $1,182.1 million, down 1.9 percent. Management described the quarter as favorable to expectations. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin 39.6 percent: Adjusted EBITDA was $250.6 million against $286.4 million, a margin of 39.6 percent against 42.8 percent. Year-to-date margin was 38.7 percent against 39.7 percent. Source
  • K-12 revenue down 9.6 percent: K-12 revenue was $324.6 million against $359.1 million a year earlier. First-half K-12 revenue was nearly $600 million, down 4.9 percent. Source
  • Digital revenue up 2.6 percent: Digital revenue was $361.4 million. Year-to-date digital growth of 5.6 percent was driven by retention and learning platform adoption, including AI tools embedded in solutions. Source
  • Gross debt reduced by $50 million: A $50 million term loan paydown was made in the quarter, bringing gross debt reduction to about $700 million since the initial public offering. Gross debt was $2,575.8 million at September 30. Source

“McGraw Hill has established an early-mover advantage as one of the first education companies to advance an agentic AI strategy”

Philip Moyer, President, Chief Executive Officer

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Revenue SourceFiscal year 2027$2,115 million to $2,175 millionKept
Re-occurring revenue SourceFiscal year 2027$1,587 million to $1,627 millionKept
Adjusted EBITDA SourceFiscal year 2027$750 million to $790 millionKept
Net leverage target SourceNot dated2.0 - 2.5xKept

What changed from last quarter

  • New: Robin Lucas, previously chief sales officer of Higher Education, was appointed President of Higher Education effective October 19, 2026, succeeding Michael Ryan. Source
  • New: Jana Thompson, previously interim president and chief product officer of the school group, was appointed President of the K-12 business effective October 1, 2026. Source
  • New: Acquisitions of TeachFX and Teachally added AI-enabled teacher coaching and curriculum customization to the K-12 offering. Source
  • New: Proprietary content and curriculum were integrated into Microsoft Copilot and Anthropic’s Claude for Teachers through Model Context Protocol, which was described as pilot progress in the prior quarter. Source
  • New: After quarter end, the company extended near-dated debt maturities. The documents give no further detail on the extension terms. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Revenue fell 5.5 percent: Second-quarter revenue was $632.2 million against $669.2 million a year earlier. Year-to-date revenue was $1,182.1 million, down 1.9 percent. Management described the quarter as favorable to expectations. Source
  • GAAP net income lower for quarter: GAAP net income was $86.4 million against $105.3 million a year earlier. Year-to-date net income was $144.2 million against $105.8 million, and net income margin was 13.7 percent. Source
  • Diluted EPS 45 cents: Diluted earnings per share were $0.45 for the quarter against $0.57 a year earlier, and $0.75 year-to-date against $0.60. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin 39.6 percent: Adjusted EBITDA was $250.6 million against $286.4 million, a margin of 39.6 percent against 42.8 percent. Year-to-date margin was 38.7 percent against 39.7 percent. Source

Segments and regions

  • K-12 revenue down 9.6 percent: K-12 revenue was $324.6 million against $359.1 million a year earlier. First-half K-12 revenue was nearly $600 million, down 4.9 percent. Source
  • K-12 re-occurring revenue fell: K-12 re-occurring revenue was nearly $200.0 million, down 7.8 percent. Year-to-date re-occurring revenue was relatively flat, which management linked to the predictability of the business. Source
  • Higher Education revenue flat: Higher Education revenue was $213.5 million, up 0.2 percent. Year-to-date revenue rose 4.5 percent, which management tied to market share gains and value-based pricing momentum. Source
  • Higher Education re-occurring revenue up: Higher Education re-occurring revenue was $170.6 million, up 5.5 percent. Year-to-date growth was 9.8 percent, which management attributed to Inclusive Access and Evergreen penetration. Source
  • Global Professional re-occurring growth: Global Professional re-occurring revenue rose 5.5 percent, driven by 7 percent medical portfolio growth. Management said agentic integrations are poised to accelerate momentum. Source
  • International revenue up slightly: International revenue rose 1.6 percent. Management said delayed Middle East shipments are being fulfilled. Source

“Our first-half performance, including robust re-occurring revenue growth, combined with strengthening indicators of our ability to deliver accelerating growth in fiscal year 2028, reinforces our confidence in our long-term strategy”

Bob Sallmann, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Products and customers

  • Digital revenue up 2.6 percent: Digital revenue was $361.4 million. Year-to-date digital growth of 5.6 percent was driven by retention and learning platform adoption, including AI tools embedded in solutions. Source
  • Re-occurring revenue down 2.0 percent: Re-occurring revenue was $414.1 million and reached 65.5 percent of total revenue. Year-to-date re-occurring revenue grew 3.7 percent, which management cited as underscoring subscription model durability. Source
  • AI Reader usage accelerated: AI Reader now covers 62 disciplines and 715 titles. Management compared the pace with fiscal 2026 levels of 47 million interactions and 2.2 million students. Source
  • Evergreen titles updated directly: Evergreen content delivery in Higher Education now includes direct updates to over 800 titles, which management said fuels retention and market share gains. Source

Costs, gross profit and margins

  • Gross profit margin 79.2 percent: GAAP gross profit was $500.5 million against $530.1 million a year earlier, a 79.2 percent margin. Management described the margin as consistent with the prior year. Cost of sales was $131.8 million. Source
  • Restructuring charges rose: Restructuring and cost savings charges were $4.2 million against $1.8 million a year earlier, and $7.9 million year-to-date against $4.9 million. Source
  • Adjusted diluted EPS 75 cents: Adjusted diluted earnings per share were $0.75 against $1.40 a year earlier. Adjusted net income was $144.6 million against $261.0 million. Source

“Our financial profile, scale, innovation and service remain differentiators in the global education market”

Bob Sallmann, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Demand and K-12 adoption

  • California Math pilots quadrupled: Management said the California Math pilot count is four times the prior-year number. Source
  • Evergreen cuts sales touchpoints: Management said Evergreen adoption came with a 35 percent reduction in sales touchpoints and 20 percent higher competitive win rates, with NPS scores at record high levels. Source

Cash, debt and capital

  • Gross debt reduced by $50 million: A $50 million term loan paydown was made in the quarter, bringing gross debt reduction to about $700 million since the initial public offering. Gross debt was $2,575.8 million at September 30. Source
  • First lien leverage 2.9 times: The consolidated first lien net leverage ratio was 2.9x at September 30, 2026. The company-defined net leverage ratio was 3.2x, on net debt of $2,342.8 million and LTM adjusted EBITDA of $724.1 million. Source
  • Operating cash flow rose: Six-month operating cash flow was $190.1 million against $168.3 million. Cash and cash equivalents were $233.0 million at September 30. Source
  • Development and capex spending: Six-month product development spending was $73.8 million and capital expenditures were $49.3 million. Acquisitions used $24.0 million for TeachFX and $5.2 million for Teachally. Source
  • Net interest expense declined: Net interest expense was $46.3 million for the quarter against $55.9 million a year earlier, and $92.1 million year-to-date against $114.7 million. Source

AI and strategy

  • Active AI users grew double digits: Active AI users grew by double digits across nine AI learning tools embedded in the company's solutions during the quarter. Source
  • UCSF medical learning integration: The company integrated its content through Model Context Protocol with the UCSF School of Medicine, which management said delivers precision medical learning at institutional scale. Source
  • Institutional AI pilots doubled: Management said it doubled the number of ongoing institutional agentic AI pilots. Source

Leadership and organization

  • Organization aligned to growth drivers: The CEO said the company is aligning its organization to expanding growth drivers, with leadership changes intended to bring continuity, a more unified global commercial vision and execution speed. Source
  • Internal leaders named to top roles: Both appointees are internal leaders who were former heads of sales and product, which the CEO said supports continuity and execution speed. Source
  • Ryan's service recognized: Management thanked Michael Ryan for 26 years of service, including seven years leading the Higher Education business. Source

Coming up, as management said on 5 November 2026

  • More AI tool launches: Management said additional AI tool launches are planned for the remainder of the fiscal year. Source
  • ELA super-cycle starts fiscal 2028: Management described the multi-year ELA super-cycle as beginning in fiscal year 2028. Source
  • California Math adoption year two: Management said the California Math program is ahead of year two of the fiscal 2028 adoption. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Active curriculum licenses Sourceover 100 million
AI Reader learning interactions since inception Sourceover 80 million
AI Reader students reached since inception Sourceapproximately 3.4 million
Higher Education market share gained over four fiscal years Source~5 points
Remaining performance obligation at September 30, 2026 Source$1,790.5 million

Risks management discussed

  • Demand: Management cited lower anticipated capture rates in select Math markets as an offset to K-12 results. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Not stated: Management said its execution focus supports confidence in fiscal year margin expansion, following the second-quarter adjusted EBITDA margin of 39.6 percent. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.