Xero Ltd (XROLF) (FY 2025) Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Revenue Growth and Strategic Investments

In This Article:

  • Revenue: Increased by 23% to $2.103 billion year over year.

  • Adjusted EBITDA: Rose by 22% to $641 million, up $114 million from the previous year.

  • Rule of 40 Outcome: Achieved 44.3%, up 3.3 percentage points year over year.

  • Subscriber Growth: Underlying growth of 10% after removing 160,000 long idle subscriptions.

  • ARPU Growth: Increased by 11% on an underlying basis.

  • Free Cash Flow Margin: Expanded to 24.1%.

  • AMRR: Surpassed $2.3 billion, up 22% year over year.

  • Churn Rate: Low at 1.03% for the year.

  • Operating Expenses Ratio: Achieved 71.8% for fiscal '25.

  • Cash and Liquidity: Total net cash addition of $683 million, with approximately $2.3 billion in available liquidity.

  • Payment Revenue Growth: Increased by 65% year over year.

  • Platform Revenue Growth: Accelerated to 29% year over year.

  • Sales and Marketing Costs: Increased by 23%, maintaining a flat percentage of revenue at 31.6%.

Release Date: May 15, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

  • Xero Ltd (XROLF) reported a 23% increase in revenue, reaching $2.103 billion year on year.

  • Adjusted EBITDA rose by 22% to $641 million, demonstrating strong financial performance.

  • The company achieved a Rule of 40 outcome of 44.3%, indicating a balance between growth and profitability.

  • Subscriber growth was robust, with a 10% increase in underlying subscribers and an 11% rise in ARPU.

  • Xero Ltd (XROLF) expanded its payment offerings, resulting in a 65% increase in payment revenue year on year.

Negative Points

  • The removal of long idle subscriptions impacted subscriber growth metrics.

  • Subscriber growth in Canada was limited due to a subdued market backdrop.

  • The company faces tougher revenue growth comparisons in the first half of fiscal '26 due to strong prior performance.

  • There is a potential ARPU headwind in the UK due to the introduction of the lower-priced Xero Simple product.

  • The North American market still requires significant investment to fully capture growth opportunities.

Q & A Highlights

Q: At the Investor Day, you targeted an improvement in the long-term OpEx to sales ratio. For FY27, will you target an improvement versus the 71.5% headline FY25 number or the 69% to 70% underlying FY25 number? A: Claire Bramley, CFO: We're pleased with our FY25 OpEx ratio performance and have set a 71.5% guidance for FY26. There are nonrecurring items included in this figure. Looking forward, we're focused on investing for growth, maintaining a disciplined approach to drive free cash flow margins and top-line growth, aiming for a Rule of 40 outcome.