Updated 3/26
Shutterstock has quietly become an intriguing name for dividend investors. It’s a company that’s made its mark in the creative world—providing digital imagery, video, and music to businesses and professionals worldwide. But over the last couple of years, Shutterstock has shifted from being purely a growth story to one that’s starting to reward shareholders with some meaningful cash returns.
The stock has taken a beating, yes. It’s now trading near 52-week lows, but if you look beyond the headline price drop, you’ll find a business that’s still generating solid cash flow and offering a surprisingly high dividend yield. Let’s dive into what’s really happening here.
Recent Events
Shutterstock’s recent story is a mix of resilience and real market skepticism. The company’s market cap has tumbled from $1.7 billion to just under $650 million in the span of a year. That kind of decline naturally raises eyebrows.
Interestingly, revenue is actually up—15% year over year. Shutterstock also continues to post solid free cash flow, which is helping to fund its dividend. But investors haven’t been buying the story. The stock’s been caught in a sharp downtrend, with increasing short interest suggesting growing doubts about its future.
What’s behind the fear? Some of it’s likely tied to a challenging competitive environment. Shutterstock faces pressure from free alternatives and the rise of AI-generated media. Meanwhile, financial ratios show some strain, with a low current ratio and a payout ratio well over 100%. Yet despite these challenges, management hasn’t flinched on its dividend.
Key Dividend Metrics
💸 Dividend Yield: 7.12%
📆 Paid Quarterly
📈 5-Year Average Yield: 1.72%
📉 Payout Ratio: 118.81%
💰 Cash Per Share: $3.19
🧾 Dividend Rate (Annualized): $1.32
📅 Ex-Dividend Date: March 6, 2025
💼 Debt/Equity Ratio: 59.96%
Dividend Overview
What catches the eye first is that yield—just over 7%. That alone is enough to get the attention of income-seeking investors. And while the high yield is partly a result of the stock’s sharp decline, the dividend itself hasn’t been cut. In fact, it’s gone up.
This is a bold move by management. Increasing the dividend when the stock is under pressure sends a message: they believe in the business’s cash flow strength. It also indicates a desire to attract long-term shareholders, especially those focused on income.
Still, there’s a balancing act. A payout ratio north of 100% based on net earnings isn’t ideal. But it’s worth noting that free cash flow is healthy, which gives them some breathing room.
Dividend Growth and Safety
Historically, Shutterstock wasn’t really known for its dividends. The company focused on reinvestment and growth. But in recent years, that’s changed.
Since launching a consistent dividend program, the company has made a clear effort to grow payouts. The track record isn’t long, but it’s been steady. The dividend has increased even in the face of market volatility.
That said, there are some clear safety concerns. Paying out more than what you earn on paper isn’t sustainable forever. However, if the business continues to churn out cash at its current pace, the dividend can be maintained for the near term.
Longer term, maintaining or increasing the dividend will depend on the company’s ability to stabilize earnings and keep competition from eroding its customer base.
Chart Analysis
Overall Trend and Moving Averages
This chart of Shutterstock (SSTK) shows a persistent and steep downtrend that’s been playing out for nearly a full year. The price has been consistently below both the 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with the 50-day sloping more sharply downward since early January. That’s a clear sign of heavy downward momentum and no real signs of recovery yet.
The distance between the 50-day and 200-day moving averages continues to widen, which reinforces the bearish outlook. There’s no flattening or crossover in sight, suggesting this downtrend still has a firm grip on the stock. Any counter-trend rallies that did occur over the last several months have been short-lived and rolled over fairly quickly.
Volume Activity
Volume spikes are seen at several key moments, especially in early October and again in late January. Those bursts often align with sharp downward price moves, pointing to institutional selling or panic-driven exits. Since February, volume has cooled off, but the price hasn’t bounced—this kind of quiet selling typically hints at distribution rather than accumulation.
There’s been no meaningful surge in volume that would suggest a capitulation bottom or aggressive buying interest stepping in yet.
RSI and Momentum
The RSI (Relative Strength Index) has been stuck in low gear for a while. It’s hovered below the 30 level since early March, indicating the stock has been in oversold territory—but that in itself hasn’t triggered any meaningful bounce.
What stands out is how long the RSI has remained compressed. This often signals a trend that’s not just weak, but potentially exhausted. Still, without a change in price behavior or stronger volume support, RSI alone doesn’t make a compelling case for reversal.
Recent Candles and Price Action
Looking at the last five candles, the stock has been grinding sideways in a tight range near its recent lows. Daily ranges have been narrow with very small wicks, showing a lack of conviction from both buyers and sellers. There’s been no strong push in either direction.
This kind of action feels like a waiting game—potentially a pause before another leg lower, or possibly the early signs of a base forming. Either way, the lack of demand is still clear. Buyers aren’t stepping in with force yet.
The absence of upper wicks on these candles also tells us sellers aren’t aggressively being absorbed either. It’s quiet, almost eerily so, after months of downward pressure.
Analyst Ratings
🔻 Shutterstock Inc. (SSTK) was recently downgraded by Truist Financial from a buy to a hold rating. This shift came in February 2025 after the company released its financial outlook for the year, which left some questions unanswered. Analysts pointed to limited visibility on forward growth and a lack of clarity around its evolving strategy in a competitive digital media space. The downgrade wasn’t about immediate danger, but more about uncertainty on the path ahead.
📉 Around the same time, Needham & Company revised their stance slightly—not a downgrade, but a downward adjustment to their price target. They maintained their buy rating but trimmed their target from $45.00 to $30.00. Their reasoning? The business still has value potential, especially with strong free cash flow and ongoing efforts to reposition itself, but short-term headwinds can’t be ignored.
💬 Currently, analysts collectively rate SSTK as a hold. The sentiment isn’t bearish, just cautious. There’s recognition of the company’s cash flow strength and brand equity, but concerns about execution risks are keeping optimism in check.
🎯 The consensus price target across covering analysts sits at approximately $45.33. That’s quite a leap from where the stock trades now, offering theoretical upside—but the wide range of price targets, from $30 to $56, shows how split opinions really are.
The takeaways from the analyst community are clear: Shutterstock still has supporters, but trust needs to be rebuilt through clearer performance and consistency in results.
Earning Report Summary
Solid Revenue Growth, But Some Underlying Headwinds
Shutterstock’s latest earnings release was a bit of a mixed bag. On the surface, the company posted a solid revenue number—$250.3 million for the quarter, which was up 15% compared to the same time last year. That kind of top-line growth is encouraging and shows the company is still finding ways to drive demand, even in a competitive and rapidly changing digital media space.
Digging a little deeper, the story gets more complicated.
Profitability Pressures Showing Up
Despite the stronger sales, Shutterstock slipped into the red again this quarter. They reported a net loss of $1.4 million, slightly wider than the $1.0 million loss from the year before. The main culprit? A sharp jump in interest expenses. Those costs ballooned to $5 million—roughly seven times what they were previously. That’s tied to debt they took on from recent acquisitions, and it’s clearly starting to bite into the bottom line.
It’s not a dramatic miss, but it does raise some questions about how manageable that debt load will be if revenue growth ever slows down.
International Markets Still Delivering
One of the brighter spots came from international performance. North America brought in $123.7 million, up 13% year over year. Europe was even stronger, growing 18% to $67.4 million. And the rest of the world wasn’t far behind, with a 16% increase bringing that segment to $59.2 million. That tells us Shutterstock is making progress globally, not just relying on its U.S. business to carry the weight.
Cash Flow and Liquidity Looking Tighter
The other piece worth noting is cash flow. This time last year, they had a solid inflow of $56.5 million. Now, they’re reporting a net cash outflow of $20.1 million. That’s a swing worth paying attention to. Some of it’s going to dividends and buybacks, but a good chunk is also being used to pay down debt.
So while the business is still generating cash, they’re using more of it to cover financing activities. It’s not an immediate red flag, but definitely something investors are going to keep an eye on if those interest expenses stay elevated.
All in all, the quarter had its wins—but also showed the importance of keeping an eye on the cost side of the equation.
Financial Health and Stability
The balance sheet tells a story of contrasts. There’s $111 million in cash, which is solid, but $311 million in debt. That creates some leverage risk, though it’s not out of control.
Where things get a little more uncomfortable is the current ratio—just 0.41. That’s quite low and suggests the company may need to manage short-term obligations carefully. It’s not a crisis, but it does mean there’s limited flexibility in the near term.
On the plus side, insiders own more than 30% of the company. That kind of skin in the game can be a good sign—they have real incentive to get this right and protect shareholder value, including the dividend.
Valuation and Stock Performance
There’s no sugarcoating it: the stock performance has been ugly. Down nearly 60% over the past year, and now sitting near its 52-week low, it’s clear that market sentiment has turned against Shutterstock.
But when you look at the actual valuation metrics, the stock appears cheap. It’s trading at 0.71 times sales and just over five times EBITDA. That’s a low bar, especially for a company still generating decent cash.
This may be a case where the stock has overshot to the downside. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s headed for a rebound tomorrow. But it does suggest a lot of pessimism is already baked in.
The 50-day and 200-day moving averages are well above the current share price, which confirms the bearish trend. Still, from a valuation standpoint, it’s hard to say this is an expensive stock by any traditional measure.
Risks and Considerations
There are a few important risks dividend investors should keep in mind here.
First and foremost is the sustainability of the dividend. With the payout ratio sitting where it is, there’s always a risk that a bad quarter or unexpected expense could force management to cut the dividend. Right now, they’re relying heavily on free cash flow to support it.
Second, liquidity is tight. A current ratio below 1 means there’s not a big cushion if things go sideways operationally. If revenue slows or costs rise, they may have to make some tough choices.
Third, competition is intensifying. With more tools offering free or AI-generated content, Shutterstock’s traditional model faces real pressure. They’ll need to keep innovating to stay relevant.
Finally, the stock’s volatility and the elevated short interest suggest a divided view among investors. That doesn’t mean the bears are right, but it does mean sentiment is fragile.
Final Thoughts
Shutterstock is far from your typical dividend stock. It’s not a slow-moving utility or a cash-rich telecom. It’s a digital content platform navigating a rapidly changing industry—and it’s doing so while offering a very generous dividend.
That kind of setup can be attractive for investors looking for high income, especially if they believe in the company’s ability to adapt and maintain its cash generation. But it comes with risks that shouldn’t be ignored.
At this stage, Shutterstock is a company in transition. It’s fighting to retain relevance while rewarding shareholders along the way. For dividend investors, that makes it a name worth watching—especially for those who don’t mind a little turbulence in exchange for a potentially high reward.