Grindr Inc

Grindr CEO George Arison said on August 6 that the dating platform now operates as an AI-native company, rebuilding its engineering around generative AI and testing a new AI companion tier called Edge priced as high as $350 a month. The company reported second-quarter revenue of $138 million, up 33% from a year earlier and beating Wall Street estimates of about $132 million, while paying users grew 16% to 1.4 million and average revenue per paying user rose to $26.51. Grindr raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to about $540 million and adjusted EBITDA to about $232 million, though GAAP earnings of $0.10 per share missed analyst expectations of about $0.14. Arison said total engineering output rose about 2.5 times between July 2025 and April 2026 without adding engineers, a shift that would have required roughly 200 more engineers at an annual cost of about $60 million, while the company expects to spend only about $6 million this year on AI tokens. The Edge tier is being tested in markets like New York, and early data showed a wider mix of users upgrading than expected, including first-time subscribers.

Morgan Stanley upgraded Grindr to Overweight from Equal-weight and raised its price target to $18 from $15, citing the company's upcoming ultra-premium subscription tier and telehealth expansion as catalysts for a new growth phase. The brokerage noted Grindr's shares have fallen about 36% over the past 12 months amid concerns that aggressive paywall-driven monetization was hurting user growth, but analysts now see a more sustainable, product-led strategy emerging through two new initiatives: EDGE, an AI-powered premium subscription offering, and Woodwork, a direct-to-consumer telehealth business. Morgan Stanley described Grindr as a one-of-one asset with roughly 15 million monthly active users, strong network effects, industry-leading engagement exceeding 65 minutes per daily active user, and EBITDA margins above 40%, yet the firm estimates the platform monetizes roughly 30% below comparable dating apps, leaving significant room for improvement. The planned launch of EDGE in late 2026 or early 2027, aimed at affluent power users with AI-powered profile recommendations, conversation insights and enhanced discovery tools, is a key part of the bullish thesis; following stronger-than-expected demand during testing in Australia at around $80 per month, Grindr is now evaluating pricing between $100 and $500 per month, and Morgan Stanley estimates EDGE could generate $78 million in revenue by 2028 in its base case. The bank also highlighted Woodwork, Grindr's telehealth brand offering erectile dysfunction treatments, GLP-1 weight-loss medications and peptides, which could tap into a large existing user base where around 30% of users already use ED medication and another 60% have considered it, projecting Woodwork could contribute $28 million in revenue by 2028. Combining the two initiatives, Morgan Stanley now forecasts revenue growth of 23% in 2026 and 17% in 2027, with EDGE and Woodwork accounting for roughly 60% of revenue growth through 2028, and expects Grindr's revenue to expand at an 18% compound annual growth rate between 2025 and 2028. The stock's valuation remains attractive, trading at about 11 times 2027 EBITDA, a roughly 35% discount to peers on a growth-adjusted basis, and the $18 price target implies about 25% upside from current levels, while the bull-case valuation of $29 suggests potential upside of more than 100% if both EDGE and Woodwork achieve strong adoption.

U.S. stock futures pointed lower on Wednesday as investors awaited remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh and monitored peace talks between the United States and Iran. Shutterstock shares plunged 28% after Getty Images abandoned its planned merger, citing unacceptable regulatory conditions from the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority. Intuitive Machines climbed 7.4% after NASA awarded it a contract worth up to $148.3 million to deliver a Nova-C lunar lander by 2028, the company's sixth task order under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program. Grindr surged 7.6% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the LGBTQ+ dating platform to Overweight and raised its price target to $18, citing strong user engagement. Klarna Group gained 6% after a Swedish court awarded its subsidiary PriceRunner approximately $1.97 billion in antitrust damages against Alphabet's Google. Oklo advanced 4.8% after the U.S. Department of Energy approved the Documented Safety Analysis for the Groves Isotope Test Reactor, moving it into final pre-startup review ahead of a July 2026 startup. ServiceNow rose 4% after Guggenheim upgraded the enterprise software company to Buy, citing durable recurring revenue growth. Nike fell nearly 4% after forecasting continued sales declines in the first half of fiscal 2027, overshadowing better-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue. Alcoa slipped 4.7% after agreeing to acquire South32's bauxite, alumina and aluminum assets for $4.1 billion.

Grindr announced that its Board of Directors has appointed CEO George Arison to the additional role of Chairman of the Board, effective June 23. J. Michael Gearon, Jr., will continue to serve as Lead Independent Director. The company highlighted that since Arison joined, Grindr has more than doubled revenue since 2022, advanced AI product innovation, and expanded organizational capabilities. In a separate move, the Compensation Committee granted Arison a new equity award of 2,250,000 restricted stock units, extending his compensation arrangements through October 2030 under an amended employment agreement.