Roku Stock Jumps As Platform Revenue Growth Accelerates, Profitability Improves

Shares of Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU) rallied in early trading on Friday, after the company reported upbeat fourth-quarter results.

Here are the key analyst insights:

• KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Justin Patterson maintained an Overweight rating, while raising the price target from $128 to $130.
• JPMorgan analyst Cory Carpenter reiterated an Overweight rating and price target of $125.
• Benchmark analyst Daniel Kurnos reaffirmed a Buy rating and price target of $130.

Check out other analyst stock ratings.

KeyBanc Capital Markets: Roku reported revenue of $1.40 billion and EBITDA of $169.4 million, topping Street estimates of $1.36 billion and $147 million, respectively, Patterson said in a note. The company's outperformance was driven by strength in Platform revenue, he added.

Management guided to first-quarter revenue and EBITDA of $1.20 billion and $130 million, which came in higher than the consensus of $1.17 billion and $95 million, respectively, the analyst stated. "With Roku transforming into a high-teens Platform revenue grower with improved GAAP EPS and FCF profitability, we believe shares now have valuation support and the potential to attract broader investor sponsorship," he further wrote.

JPMorgan: Roku generated 16% year-on-year revenue growth, driven mostly by Platform revenue growth of 18% versus its 15% guidance, Carpenter said. This implies that core growth, excluding the impacts from political advertising, Frndly, and accounting standard 606, accelerated from 20% in the third quarter to 25% in the latest quarter, he added.

"We didn't expect Roku to initially guide to an acceleration in 2026, but we did think it was critical for the outlook not to imply any deceleration," the analyst wrote. He further stated that management guided to faster growth in the first quarter than the full year due to:

• Earlier comps in the first quarter
• The quarter is the last without the impact of the Frndly acquisition
• There is less visibility in the back half

Benchmark: Expectations from Roku were "exceptionally hot" going into the quarter, Kurnos said. He added, however, that the company's reported figures prove that the "momentum is real."  

"This is arguably the best print and guide that Roku has posted in as long as we can remember, with no mistakes or confusion in the messaging either despite being just 6 weeks into the year and visibility remaining limited," the analyst wrote. The results and guidance indicate management's confidence in Roku's "unique drivers," which should help the company to outperform its peers, he further stated.

ROKU Price Action: Roku shares were up 6.25% at $88.11 at the time of publication on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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