Klaviyo shares fell 20% after Q3 revenue guidance missed estimates by 6% and CFO Amanda Whalen announced her departure. The Q2 beat was overshadowed by a softer outlook and leadership change.
Klaviyo shares dropped about 20% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the marketing-automation company issued third-quarter revenue guidance well below Wall Street estimates and announced the departure of its chief financial officer.
The Boston-based company forecast Q3 revenue of $264 million to $266 million. Analysts had expected $280.4 million, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The miss reflects slower-than-expected growth in Klaviyo's international business and a pullback in spending from small and midsize customers, the company said.
CFO Amanda Whalen will step down effective Sept. 15. Whalen, who held the role since 2021, is leaving for another company. A search for a replacement is underway.
Klaviyo reported Q2 results that topped expectations. Revenue rose 31% from a year earlier to $261.8 million, beating the $258.7 million consensus. Adjusted earnings came in at 17 cents a share, 2 cents above estimates. The forward-looking numbers overshadowed the beat.
Co-CEO Andrew Bialecki said on the earnings call that Klaviyo is investing in new products, including its recently launched AI-powered content generator. Those efforts have not yet translated into faster customer acquisition, he said. “We are building for the long term, and some of those investments take time to show up in the top line.”
The company's customer count rose to roughly 160,000, up from 155,000 at the end of Q1. Net revenue retention, a key metric for subscription software firms, was above 115% for the 12th straight quarter.
The Q3 outlook suggests the macro environment for small businesses – Klaviyo's core customer base – has gotten tougher. The company generates most of its revenue from monthly subscriptions priced between $20 and $1,000. When those customers tighten budgets, the impact shows up quickly.
Klaviyo maintained its full-year 2026 revenue forecast of $1.08 billion to $1.09 billion, implying a stronger second half. That math requires Q4 revenue of roughly $310 million, a number some analysts said will be hard to reach without a pickup in demand.
The company's Alpha Score sits at 43 out of 100, a Mixed label, reflecting the tension between strong execution in the reported quarter and the uncertainty around the guidance miss and the CFO transition.
Whalen's departure adds an unpredictable element. She was widely respected on Wall Street for her discipline on margins and cash flow. Klaviyo said it would hire an external CFO search firm, and Whalen will stay through mid-September to help with the transition.
Klaviyo expects to report Q3 results in early November.
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