Marketing technology company Zeta Global (NYSE: ZETA) announced better-than-expected revenue in Q3 2026, with sales up 46.1% year on year to $492.7 million. Guidance for next quarter’s revenue was optimistic at $523 million at the midpoint, 2.4% above analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.38 per share was 39.2% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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StockStory’s take

Zeta Global’s third quarter results exceeded Wall Street’s expectations for both revenue and profit, yet the market reacted negatively. Management attributed the quarter’s growth to accelerating adoption of its Athena AI platform, expanded use cases among enterprise clients, and increased customer demand for measurable marketing outcomes. CEO David Steinberg emphasized that Zeta’s proprietary data asset and integration of AI have led to more effective marketing campaigns and stronger customer relationships, noting, “AI is only as powerful as the data that fuels it, and we have built one of the world’s largest proprietary data assets.”

Looking ahead, Zeta Global’s guidance is fueled by ongoing expansion of its AthenaOS platform, continued partnerships with companies like Palantir and OpenAI, and a strategy to address broader enterprise intelligence opportunities beyond marketing. Management expects further adoption of AthenaOS and related AI tools to drive revenue growth, with Steinberg stating, “AthenaOS brings everything together in one place...we’re going to see clients scaling faster than at any point I have seen.” The company also anticipates that new product launches and integrations will expand its footprint into areas such as supply chain management, cybersecurity, and real estate intelligence.

Key insights from management’s remarks

Management cited rapid Athena adoption, new enterprise use cases, and strong customer engagement as key drivers of the quarter’s performance.

• Athena platform drives growth: Over half of Zeta’s largest customers are now monthly active users of the Athena AI platform, which led to higher customer retention rates and accelerated average revenue per user (ARPU) growth.
• Enterprise expansion beyond marketing: Management highlighted several cases where initial marketing technology deployments expanded into broader enterprise intelligence solutions, such as supply chain and fraud detection, demonstrating traction outside traditional marketing applications.
• Accelerated sales productivity: Rising adoption of Athena and broader product offerings resulted in a pipeline increase of over 100% year-over-year, with pilot programs scaling to large deployments more quickly than in prior quarters.
• Strategic partnerships and new channels: The Palantir partnership is beginning to yield new enterprise customers, while acquisitions like Senso and Digital Audience are strengthening integration with cutting-edge AI models and enabling new customer engagement channels.
• Competitive landscape shifts: The announced Salesforce acquisition of Braze was cited as a catalyst driving legacy marketing technology customers to consider Zeta, particularly as Zeta positions itself as an AI-native alternative.

Drivers of future performance

Zeta’s management expects growth to be driven by broader adoption of AthenaOS, expansion into new enterprise functions, and scaling of strategic partnerships.

• AthenaOS enterprise rollout: Management expects the beta and general availability of AthenaOS to expand Zeta’s reach beyond marketing, targeting supply chain, inventory management, and cybersecurity applications. The platform’s flexibility to integrate alongside legacy systems is anticipated to help win enterprise accounts.
• Partnership and channel momentum: Newly developed relationships with Palantir and OpenAI are forecasted by management to bring incremental revenue and serve as a foundation for deeper integration into client workflows, especially as enterprises seek to retain data sovereignty while leveraging advanced AI.
• Competitive and market dynamics: The ongoing replacement cycle for legacy marketing technology, along with shifts in digital advertising budgets due to changes in search platforms and third-party identifiers, are expected by management to support continued share gains. However, management acknowledged that scaling new products and converting pipeline opportunities into revenue remain key execution risks.

Catalysts in upcoming quarters

In the coming quarters, key focus areas will include (1) the pace of AthenaOS adoption and expansion into enterprise use cases beyond marketing, (2) commercial traction from partnerships with Palantir and OpenAI, and (3) the conversion rate of Zeta Live pipeline opportunities into recurring revenue. Execution on international expansion and broader integration of new acquisitions will also be critical to sustaining growth.

Zeta Global currently trades at $30.76, down from $32.82 just before the earnings. At this price, is it a buy or sell? Find out in our full research report (it’s free).

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