Brad Freeman
Equity Researcher, Creator of Stock Market Nerd
Reddit's worsening US user growth threatens its revenue runway despite elite ARPU growth, revenue growth and margin expansion. US daily users fell 2% year over year and missed estimates by 7%; the Q4 guide was weak. It needs healthier user growth in its most important market to dispel Google/AI discovery fears. Forward indicators do not look promising, and the trend of positive estimate revisions will end. x.com x.comÂ
AI search is structurally cutting how new users find Reddit, threatening its growth engine much as AI hurt Duolingo. Despite an excellent beat and raise, management said Google's AI overviews are materially hurting user growth and caused the miss in that metric. Long-term engaged users typically found Reddit through search, so fewer may become valuable users. A tough four-quarter reset seems likely before comparisons normalize, a low-conviction view; it is far from doomed but must show progress. x.com x.com x.com x.com x.comÂ
Reddit's Q3 drop in US daily users risks another poor market reaction, even if headline earnings are strong. Last quarter a slight sequential decline in US daily users sent the shares down 20% despite a massive triple beat; the new chart shows a further sequential drop in Q3. x.com x.comÂ
Reddit's stock is unlikely to rerate until it shows cleaner US daily user growth and less reliance on volatile search referrals, despite a strong financial engine. US DAUq grew only 6% versus 28% internationally, logged-in growth was just 7%, and management called search traffic volatile. The 100M US DAU goal looks further away, AI licensing showed no progress with other revenue up 24% to $43M, and the $860-870M Q3 revenue guide did not address user concerns. x.comÂ
Reddit's push toward required logins could improve targeting and monetization but may hinder search discovery and add friction for casual users. Revenue rose 53% to $895M and free cash flow reached $363M, yet overall user growth lagged despite a good showing from US logged-in users; stock-based pay was higher than desired. Google will probably pressure near-term DAU growth. The finances remain solid, but the login strategy's impact on growth needs more clarity. x.com x.com x.com x.comÂ
Alphabet's slowing Search growth and expected negative free cash flow are an overreaction because its next AI monetization wave and infrastructure buildout support long-term growth. AI Mode ads are expanding internationally, Gemini has passed 1 billion users without ads, and Google is accepting lower Cloud margins to secure third-party compute. Analysts expect FCF to recover sharply in 2028 as AI investments generate cash. x.com x.com x.comÂ
Alphabet's AI-mode ads could move the needle, giving the stock a tentative upside bias despite search uncertainty. Search supplies $39b of $41b in quarterly segment profit, but its revenue growth slowed to 12% and will likely slow to 10% in Q4. Queries remain healthy; Alphabet says AI queries are mostly additive. Cloud revenue grew 96% year over year. At 18x a slightly above-consensus 2027 GAAP EPS estimate for over 30% operating profit growth, the stock remains a tough call. x.com x.com x.comÂ
Reddit's logged-in users drive monetization, so weak search-driven traffic matters less than ARPU. Reddit says app and logged-in users grew sequentially in Q3 and generate over 80% of monetization, though lost search referrals also hurt them. ARPU rose 53% despite barely higher users; a low ad base could allow it to double even with muted growth. Restricting Google scraping might force a licensing deal that helps its Anthropic case and OpenAI renewal, though no deal is certain. x.com x.com x.com … Show more
Reddit's share price is collapsing even as its fundamentals accelerate. Average revenue per US and international user is accelerating, growth is speeding up and the business is showing signs of operating leverage. x.comÂ
Alphabet's search business faces disruption as AI alternatives start to replace traditional searches, even though the shift has yet to hurt revenue. Search still grew 12%, as predicted, but this may be its last double-digit result. Early Uber use in San Francisco likewise preceded taxis losing share. Alphabet's impressive cloud growth accounts for only a quarter of revenue. x.com x.com x.com x.com x.com x.comÂ
Reddit's US ARPU growth is more impressive than the market credits. It rose 40% since March to $14 per quarter, while trailing free cash flow reached about $1.2B in September. The US daily-user chart is less flattering. x.com x.comÂ
Alphabet offers attractive risk/reward because its earlier equity raise suppressed the shares despite strong growth. The $80B-plus raise should suffice for now; another next year is uncertain. Search grew 17% in the prior results, while cloud revenue more than doubled in the latest. Investment losses, not the business, hit EPS; weaker free cash flow puts investors off. A search slowdown would be a warning flag, though Gemini and other businesses could soften the blow. x.com x.com x.com x.com … Show more
