VerticalScope Holdings

FORA.TO

Software - Application · Technology

Exchange

Toronto Stock Exchange

Winston Score

Winston is worried

Weak fundamentals across most pillars.

Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Mar 31, 2026

How the score breaks down

Quality

Weak

Growth

Weak

Cash Flow

Mixed

Stability

Mixed

Valuation

Data not available

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Winston Score History

The full picture

VerticalScope is a Canadian internet company that owns and operates a large network of online forums and communities. These communities are built around specific hobbies and interests — things like motorcycles, trucks, pets, and outdoor sports. Regular people visit these sites to ask questions, share advice, and talk with others who share the same passion.

The company makes most of its money through digital advertising shown to visitors across its forum network. VerticalScope is headquartered in Toronto and operates primarily in North America, with over 1,200 communities reaching tens of millions of users each month. Its competitive edge comes from owning niche, hard-to-replicate communities with years of user-generated content that ranks well in search engines. The main risk the business faces is its heavy dependence on Google search traffic — any change to Google's search algorithm can quickly reduce visitors and hurt ad revenue, which helps explain the current negative operating margin.

Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

-16.2% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Revenue declining

EPS Growth

-27.3% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

Insider Activity

54.7%ownership

→ Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

C$20M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

→ Burn rate stable

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Revenue declining

VerticalScope Holdings's revenue is actually shrinking. In a growth stock, that removes the core investment thesis. The low Winston Score here may be warranted — unless there's a turnaround story.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Profit per sale

Gross Margin

-20.3%

Thin — -20.3% gross margin

Profit after running costs

Operating Margin

-30.7%

Losing money on operations — -30.7%

Return on the money invested

ROCE

-5.5%

Weak — -5.5% return on capital

Negative ROIC means the business is losing money on every dollar invested in it.

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Growth

Sales growth

Sales YoY

-17.2%

Shrinking sales (-17.2% YoY)

Profit growth

EPS YoY

N/A

Data not available

How steady the profit is

EPS Consistency

2/8 quarters

Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash

Cash Conversion

N/A

Data not available

Spare cash per sale

FCF Margin

32.1%

Converts sales into free cash efficiently (32.1%)

Free cash flow margin above 20%. Out of every $100 in sales, more than $20 is real cash they keep.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns

Debt / Equity

0.61

Moderate — manageable debt (0.61)

Covers its interest

Interest Cover

N/A

Data not available

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Valuation

Price vs profit

P/E Ratio (TTM)

N/M

no trend

Negative earnings — P/E not meaningful

Cheaper or dearer next year

P/E vs Forward

N/A

not available

Data not available

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Dividends

Not applicable for this business.

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