Catena Media has scrapped its 2026 growth targets after a difficult third quarter saw revenue tumble sharply and profitability shrink to near-negligible levels.
The affiliate marketing company reported a 29% revenue decline in Q3 2026, with total revenue falling to €8.3m for the period compared to stronger figures from prior quarters.
EBITDA for the quarter came in at just €700,000, a figure that was only achieved after reversing funds originally earmarked for the employee bonus programme.
As a direct consequence of these results, Catena Media confirmed it no longer expects to achieve its previously stated target of double-digit organic revenue and EBITDA growth in 2026.
CEO Manuel Stan addressed the performance plainly, saying: “This was a weak quarter and our results reflect that.”
Stan pointed to seismic changes in the search environment as a key driver of the underperformance, noting that the landscape is shifting at a pace that hits CPA-reliant businesses particularly hard.
“The search landscape is undergoing a rapid and fundamental shift, and as a predominantly cost-per-acquisition (CPA) based business our results reflect the effects of these changes immediately and in full,” Stan added.
The group highlighted that generative search technology is fundamentally transforming how users discover brands online, reducing the volume of traffic being channelled through affiliate platforms like Catena Media.
Traditional search rankings also declined during the quarter, impacted by AI-assisted personalised search patterns and search engines continuing to surface lower-relevancy content in results pages.
Compounding the structural headwinds, certain operator partners reduced their marketing budgets during the seasonal summer slowdown, further squeezing the company’s revenue streams.
With more than 90% of new customers acquired under CPA arrangements, Catena Media has limited recurring revenue available to absorb such a combination of pressures when they strike simultaneously.
Stan outlined the company’s response, saying: “We are reducing our dependence on search by diversifying our revenue streams, including through our newly announced TraffiqX project and new verticals like prediction markets, and by continuing to build the strength of our core products.”
The CEO added that a new platform called TraffiqX is planned for launch in the first quarter of 2027, which is expected to support the company’s broader diversification efforts going forward.
Catena Media also disclosed it expects to recognise a non-cash impairment charge on intangible assets of between €30m and €35m in Q3, recorded in accordance with IAS 36 accounting standards.
For the first nine months of 2026, revenue reached €30.1m compared to €31.0m in the same period last year, while adjusted EBITDA fell from €5.2m to €4.6m over the same timeframe.
The company will publish its full Q3 2026 interim report on 10 November at 17:35 CET, followed by a webcast for investors and analysts at 18:00 CET.
