In November of last year, I rated shares of Dropbox ( DBX ) a ‘buy’ noting that the company’s valuation had come in while the company appeared poised to pivot toward growth via Dash and its self-serve offerings. Yet the Q4 resultsI'm an insurance Case Manager with a deep interest in investing. My investment philosophy is all about buying high quality stocks and great businesses. My favorite businesses are those led by disciplined capital allocators, earn exceptional returns on capital, and can compound thei ...

Core Insights - Backblaze, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLZE) is recognized in the cloud storage industry, with Oppenheimer setting a price target of $8.50, indicating a potential upside of approximately 94.51% from its current trading price of $4.37 [1] Financial Performance - In Q4 2025, Backblaze reported earnings of $0.06 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.01, marking a 351.13% earnings surprise compared to a loss of $0.06 per share in the same quarter last year [2][6] - The company's revenue for the quarter ending December 2025 was $37.76 million, slightly above the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.73%, and up from $33.79 million reported a year ago, demonstrating consistent revenue growth [3][6] Strategic Developments - Backblaze achieved a significant milestone by closing its first eight-figure total contract value neocloud agreement, which highlights the strength of its storage cloud platform [4][6] - The launch of B2 Neo, a neocloud-specific storage offering, further showcases Backblaze's capabilities in the AI-driven cloud storage market [4] Market Position - Currently, BLZE is priced at $4.37 with a market capitalization of approximately $252.05 million, and the stock has shown volatility, trading between $4.31 and $4.54 today [5] - Over the past year, BLZE has experienced a high of $10.86 and a low of $3.83, reflecting its fluctuating nature in the market [5]

Backblaze, Inc. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Summary - Moby Strategic Execution and AI Positioning Achieved first-ever adjusted free cash flow profitability as a public company, demonstrating inherent operating leverage as the platform scales. Stabilized B2 Cloud Storage growth at approximately 20% over the last five quarters by focusing on core use cases and upmarket expansion. Launched B2 Neo, a white-label high-performance storage offering designed to serve as the backend for the roughly 200 emerging 'n ...

Backblaze (NasdaqGM:BLZE) Q4 2025 Earnings call February 23, 2026 05:00 PM ET Company ParticipantsGleb Budman - Co-founder, CEO and ChairpersonMarc Suidan - CFOMimi Kong - Senior Director of Investor Relations and Corporate DevelopmentRustam Kanga - VP of ResearchConference Call ParticipantsEric Martinuzzi - Senior Research AnalystEthan Widell - AnalystIttai Kidron - Managing Director and Senior AnalystJason Ader - Equity Research Analyst and Co-Head of Technology GroupJeff Van Rhee - Partner and Senior Equ ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - For Q4 2025, total revenue was $37.8 million, in line with guidance, and adjusted EBITDA margin reached 28%, doubling from the prior year [6][17] - Full year revenue grew 14% year-over-year, with B2 Cloud Storage growing 26% [6][17] - Adjusted Free Cash Flow was positive $4 million in Q4, representing a margin of 11% [20][23] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - B2 revenue grew 24% year-over-year in Q4, up from 22% in the prior year [17] - B2 net revenue retention (NRR) was 111%, down from 116% in the prior quarter, reflecting variability from a large customer [18] - The number of customers generating over $50,000 in ARR increased by 35% year-over-year, with their ARR growing 73% year-over-year to $26 million [8][18] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The market for NeoClouds is projected to reach $237 billion within the next five years, with Backblaze estimating a $14 billion opportunity in NeoCloud storage by 2030 [13] - The company added 12,000 customers in its self-serve platform this year, indicating strong demand from AI developers [15] Company Strategy and Development Direction - Backblaze is focusing on a go-to-market transformation to drive growth, including initiatives to increase awareness, drive pipeline consistency, and expand revenue within the existing customer base [9][10] - The company is positioning itself to take advantage of the AI opportunity by becoming the storage backbone for AI workflows [11][12] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in the long-term growth opportunity presented by AI, despite potential market volatility [11] - The company anticipates some pressure on gross margins due to increased costs but is launching a gross margin optimization initiative [19] Other Important Information - The company closed its largest contract in history with over $15 million in total contract value, validating product-market fit at scale [17] - Management is shifting part of compensation to Performance-Based Stock Units to align incentives with shareholders [21] Q&A Session Summary Question: Can you explain how B2 Neo differs from B2 and the demand patterns? - B2 Neo is a white label offering designed for NeoClouds, allowing them to manage storage for their customers through APIs, while B2 is sold directly to end customers [27][28] Question: What is the duration of the $50 million contract? - The contract is a three-year deal [75] Question: What is the expected decline in the computer backup business? - The computer backup business is expected to decline by 5% year-over-year, with a -3% decline in Q1 [32] Question: What factors are affecting gross margins? - Increased data center costs and the need to accelerate capital expenditures are expected to reduce gross margins by a few hundred basis points [52] Question: What is the outlook for NRR in 2026? - NRR could drop to around 100% for 1 or 2 quarters due to the lumpiness of a large customer, but is expected to stabilize around 110% by year-end [61][63]

Backblaze (NasdaqGM:BLZE) Q4 2025 Earnings call February 23, 2026 05:00 PM ET Speaker9Good day, everyone. Welcome to the Backblaze fourth quarter and full year 2025 earnings call. Just a reminder, this call is being recorded. I would now like to hand the call over to Ms. Mimi Kong. Please go ahead.Speaker8Thank you. Good morning, and welcome to Backblaze's fourth quarter and full year 2025 earnings call. On the call with me today are Gleb Budman, Co-founder, CEO, and Chairperson of the Board, and Marc Suida ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - In Q4 2025, revenue was $636 million, a decline of 110 basis points year-over-year, but increased 40 basis points when excluding FormSwift, which was a 150 basis point headwind [23] - Total ARR was $2.526 billion, down 190 basis points year-over-year, and down 30 basis points when excluding FormSwift [24] - Average revenue per paying user (ARPU) increased to $139.68 from $139.07 in the prior quarter, primarily due to FX tailwinds and a shift from annual to monthly plans [24] - Gross margin was 80.8%, down 230 basis points year-over-year, while operating margin was 38.2%, up 130 basis points from the year-ago period [25][26] - Unlevered free cash flow was $251 million, or $0.99 per share, up 44% year-over-year [27] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The core FSS business showed steady growth across 2025, with improvements in funnel quality, pricing, and retention drivers [6] - The individuals business demonstrated growth, indicating that focused innovation can lead to better retention and growth [6] - The introduction of Dash capabilities within Teams plans has shown promising early engagement, with over half of active users returning multiple days per week [9] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company exited Q4 with 18.08 million paying users, a sequential increase of approximately 10,000 users, driven by momentum in the simple plan [24] - The company expects modestly negative net new paying users in Q1 2026, largely due to seasonality and FormSwift headwinds, with flat growth anticipated for the remainder of the year [32] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company aims to restore revenue growth while focusing on efficiency and improving the core business [4][15] - The strategy includes scaling Dash as a standalone product and integrating AI capabilities into the core FSS offering [10][19] - M&A is viewed as a potential growth lever, with a focus on strategic acquisitions that can expand the product portfolio and contribute to incremental ARR [19][82] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in the direction of the company, emphasizing the importance of execution and scaling successful initiatives [13][22] - The leadership changes made in late 2024 and early 2025 are expected to drive sustained improvements in retention and growth [17][70] - The company acknowledges the competitive nature of the FSS market but believes there are opportunities for growth through innovation and improved customer experiences [15][17] Other Important Information - The company repurchased approximately 14 million shares in Q4, spending about $415 million, with $1.17 billion remaining under the share repurchase authorization [29] - The company executed subleases in its real estate portfolio, expecting to generate approximately $97 million in total future cash payments [28] Q&A Session Questions and Answers Question: Can you provide quantitative metrics around Dash? - The company is focused on product quality and engagement before scaling up adoption and monetization, with specific metrics to be shared in the future as progress is made [39][41] Question: What metrics can you provide around engagement with Dash? - Early results show good adoption and engagement from core users, with plans to accelerate the rollout of Dash to more users this year [51][52] Question: What drove improvements in retention? - Improvements in retention are attributed to new leadership and enhancements across the customer journey, including better communication of value and product experience [70][71] Question: What are the assumptions for paying user growth in the guidance? - The company expects some seasonality in Q1, with a flat year-over-year growth in net new paying users for the full year, reflecting improvements in retention and customer journey [79]

Group 1 - Akamai Technologies, Inc. announced that Deutsche Telekom Security is utilizing its Security Certified Service Provider program to provide advanced cybersecurity services to sectors such as finance, insurance, critical infrastructure, and the public sector [1][4] - The program is designed to enhance organizations' cybersecurity through expert-led managed security services, allowing partners to deliver Akamai's advanced security solutions with deep technical expertise [2][4] - Akamai is extending its Guardicore Segmentation support through Deutsche Telekom Security, offering managed segmentation administration, incident response, and audit and compliance services on a sovereign cloud [3][8] Group 2 - Akamai has enhanced its Security Certified Service Provider programs to address the increasing demand for stronger API security and microsegmentation in targeted industries, aiming to strengthen customer relationships and expand into regulated markets [4][8] - The company is well-positioned to meet the rising demand for API security and managed services globally by combining its global edge platform with certified partners [4][8]

Core Insights - The Chinese hybrid cloud storage industry is entering a critical development phase, with a projected market size of approximately 7.369 billion yuan in 2024, representing a year-on-year growth of 20.35% [1][10]. Industry Overview - Cloud storage refers to the online storage model that allows data to be transmitted to remote third-party servers for storage, management, and access via the internet, eliminating reliance on local physical storage devices [2]. - The most common classifications of cloud storage are public cloud storage, private cloud storage, and hybrid cloud storage, corresponding to three deployment models of cloud computing [2]. Industry Development History - The Chinese hybrid cloud storage industry has evolved through three stages: 1. The nascent stage before 2010, focusing on exploring cloud computing concepts and technology accumulation. 2. The growth stage from 2011 to 2015, where cloud computing technology matured, leading to enterprise trials of hybrid cloud backup and archiving. 3. The maturity stage from 2016 to the present, marked by large-scale applications and the emergence of innovative products [6]. Industry Value Chain - The upstream of the hybrid cloud storage industry includes raw materials and components such as chips, storage media, and software like operating systems and databases. - The midstream consists of hybrid cloud storage solution and service providers. - The downstream applications span various sectors, including finance, government, manufacturing, healthcare, education, and the internet [8]. Market Size - The hybrid cloud storage market is characterized by its ability to balance the flexibility of public clouds with the control of private clouds, making it a "golden choice" for enterprises seeking efficient data management and compliance [10]. - Solutions like Huawei Cloud Stack and Alibaba Cloud hybrid storage arrays have achieved intelligent tiering of hot and cold data, significantly enhancing storage efficiency [10]. Key Companies' Performance - The competitive landscape of the hybrid cloud storage industry is marked by a concentration of leading players and multi-polar competition. Huawei Cloud dominates in the government and finance sectors, while Alibaba Cloud leverages its ecosystem to cover various industries [12]. - China Telecom's Tianyi Cloud HBlock distributed storage system supports unified management of local and cloud data, enhancing efficiency and reducing costs [12]. - Alibaba Cloud's hybrid storage services have supported over one million global customers, becoming a key enabler for digital transformation [13]. Industry Development Trends 1. The integration of technologies such as AI, big data, and edge computing will drive the intelligent evolution of storage architectures, enhancing performance and efficiency [14]. 2. Strengthening security compliance capabilities will become a core competitive advantage, with enterprises adopting unified security management platforms [15]. 3. The industry will move towards green and low-carbon development, with leading companies adopting energy-efficient technologies and optimizing resource allocation [16].

Core Insights - Backblaze, Inc. is participating in the 2025 Sports Video Group Summit, highlighting the importance of cloud storage in the AI-driven media landscape [1][2] - The panel discussion will focus on the complexities of storage decisions in sports media, emphasizing cost models, workflow efficiency, and hybrid architectures [2][3] Company Overview - Backblaze provides high-performance cloud object storage that supports AI workflows, data-heavy applications, and media management, serving over 500,000 customers globally [5] - The company aims to eliminate barriers related to lock-in, complexity, and cost, enabling businesses to innovate freely [5] Event Details - Laquie TN Campbell from Backblaze will be a panelist at the SVG Summit, discussing the role of storage in enhancing AI capabilities in sports production [3][6] - The panel titled "The Great Storage Showdown" will take place on December 15, 2025, at the New York Hilton Midtown [6]