What Happened?
Shares of academic publishing company John Wiley & Sons (NYSE: WLY) jumped 2.7% in the afternoon session after it continued to rally from the previous week as the company reported strong first-quarter 2026 results driven by growth in AI licensing. The company's earnings call highlights revealed that AI licensing revenue reached $29 million for the quarter, a significant increase from $17 million in the prior year period. This growth in its Research division was also supported by a 25% increase in submissions and a 13% rise in output.
After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $41.00, up 3% from previous close.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Wiley’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 7 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful, although it might not be something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 4 days ago when the stock dropped 4.7% on the news that the company reported a year-over-year revenue decline in its second-quarter 2025 results. The company posted revenue of $396.8 million, down 1.7% from the same period last year, signaling ongoing challenges. While GAAP earnings improved to $0.22 per share compared to a loss of $0.03 in the prior year, investors appeared more focused on the top-line weakness and the company's continued cash burn. Wiley reported a negative free cash flow of $99.9 million for the quarter, raising concerns about its profitability and operational efficiency despite the improvement in net income.
Wiley is down 5% since the beginning of the year, and at $41.00 per share, it is trading 22.8% below its 52-week high of $53.13 from November 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Wiley’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,254.
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