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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Zip and Megaport are both described as growth companies, but they are not selling the same thing and their headline KPIs cannot be compared one-for-one. Zip Co (ASX: ZIP) earns income from point-of-sale credit and digital payments in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Megaport (ASX: MP1) sells recurring network-as-a-service connectivity, including network ports and virtual connections. A sound comparison therefore matches each company’s growth, margins, risks and valuation to the economics of its own business rather than ranking a transaction-volume figure against an annual-recurring-revenue figure.
The practical method is to use the same reporting date, identify what each metric actually measures, separate company-defined cash measures from statutory accounting, and then inspect valuation, balance-sheet capacity and dilution in the relevant annual reports. The FY26 figures below are company-reported operating statistics, not proof that either share is a better investment.
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What Zip and Megaport actually sell
Zip: payment activity backed by consumer credit
Zip operates digital payment and point-of-sale credit products. Its activity is visible through transaction volume (TTV), customer and merchant counts, income, cash earnings and credit-loss measures. TTV records the value of transactions processed through Zip; it is not revenue and should not be treated as equivalent to Megaport’s recurring sales.
For the year ended 30 June 2026 (FY26), Zip reported A$1,347.4 million total income, up 24.6%, and A$16.7 billion TTV, up 27.2%. It reported A$268.9 million cash EBTDA, up 57.9%, a company scorecard 20.0% operating margin, and a 3.9% cash net transaction margin. Scale was 6.5 million active customers and 97.4 thousand merchants. The same scorecard showed net bad debts equal to 1.8% of TTV, a credit-performance indicator rather than a complete measure of every risk Zip carries. These figures are presented on Zip’s investor-relations page: Zip investor relations.
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Megaport: recurring connectivity sold through a global network
Megaport provides network-as-a-service products such as ports and virtual connectivity. Customers buy network capacity and connections, so recurring revenue, service count, enabled data centres and customer retention are more informative starting points than payment volume.
As at 30 June 2026, Megaport reported A$395.2 million or more in annual recurring revenue (ARR), 37,000 or more services, 1,200 or more enabled data centres and 4,000 or more customers. Megaport defines ARR as the last month’s monthly recurring revenue multiplied by 12 and excludes non-recurring or one-off revenue. That definition matters: ARR is a run-rate measure at a point in time, not the same as statutory revenue earned during the year. The company’s FY26 highlights are available at Megaport investor relations.
FY26 snapshot: place each number in its proper box
The table uses the latest full-year figures supplied for both companies. “Not comparable” means the unit or definition answers a different question, not that the metric is unimportant.
| Measure | Zip Co FY26 | Megaport FY26 | How to read it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Year ended 30 June 2026 | Position as at 30 June 2026 for ARR and operating scale | Use the same date, while recognising that an ARR snapshot is not a full-year income statement. |
| Top-line measure | A$1,347.4m total income, up 24.6% | ARR of A$395.2m or more | Total income and ARR are different accounting and operating concepts. |
| Core activity | A$16.7bn TTV, up 27.2% | 37,000 or more services | TTV is payment value processed; services are network connections. |
| Cash profitability | A$268.9m cash EBTDA, up 57.9% | FY26 cash EBITDA not stated in the supplied figures | Do not infer a Megaport cash-earnings number from ARR. |
| Operating margin | 20.0% company scorecard operating margin | FY26 operating margin not stated in the supplied figures | Zip’s percentage is a company-defined cash operating metric; it is not automatically comparable with a statutory margin. |
| Risk indicator | Net bad debts of 1.8% of TTV | Retention and recurring-service economics | Credit losses and network retention are business-specific indicators. |
| Customers and footprint | 6.5m active customers; 97.4k merchants | 4,000 or more customers; 1,200 or more enabled data centres | Customer counts have different definitions and commercial meanings. |
How to judge the quality of growth
1. Start with the period and denominator
Write the reporting period beside every percentage. Zip’s 24.6% income growth and 27.2% TTV growth are FY26 year-on-year changes. Megaport’s ARR is reported at 30 June 2026 and does not itself state a year-on-year growth rate in the supplied FY26 highlights. A percentage without its base, date and definition can make unlike businesses appear comparable when they are not.
2. Pair the top line with an operating unit
For Zip, examine income alongside TTV, active customers and merchants. If TTV rises faster than income, investigate changes in take rates, product mix, funding costs and credit performance rather than assuming the extra volume has the same economic value. Zip’s FY26 scorecard gives enough information to ask that question: TTV grew 27.2% while total income grew 24.6%, and the company reported a 3.9% cash net transaction margin.
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For Megaport, pair ARR with services, data-centre reach and customers. ARR of at least A$395.2 million is a recurring run-rate based on the final month of FY26; service and footprint growth help indicate whether the run-rate is being built through more connections and locations. The ARR definition excludes one-off revenue, which makes it useful for recurring-demand analysis but unsuitable as a substitute for statutory revenue.
3. Check retention, but date it
Megaport reported 107% net revenue retention (NRR) for FY25, the year ended 30 June 2025. NRR measures the revenue retained and expanded from an existing customer cohort after churn, downgrades and expansion; it is not a FY26 result. The FY25 release also reported A$227.1 million revenue, up 16%, and A$62.3 million EBITDA. Those figures provide prior-year context only and should not be blended into a FY26 comparison. They appear in Megaport’s 21 August 2025 ASX announcement: Megaport FY25 full-year results.
4. Look for growth that improves economics
Growth is more useful when incremental activity produces better or durable economics. Zip’s FY26 cash EBTDA growth of 57.9% exceeded its income growth of 24.6%, but that is a company-defined cash measure and does not by itself establish statutory profit or free-cash-flow quality. Megaport’s recurring model makes ARR quality, NRR, service utilisation and the cost of adding network capacity central questions. The correct follow-up is not “which percentage is larger?” but “what investment and risk were required to produce that percentage, and can it persist?”
Margins and cash generation: avoid false precision
Zip’s full-year and interim measures
Zip’s FY26 scorecard reports cash EBTDA, operating margin and cash net transaction margin. These are useful for tracking management’s operating framework, but they are not interchangeable with statutory net profit, statutory operating margin or operating cash flow. The label “cash EBTDA” should remain attached to the A$268.9 million figure.
Zip’s six-month results for the period ended 31 December 2025 show a different interim set: A$124.3 million cash EBITDA, up 85.6%; 18.7% operating margin; A$8.4 billion TTV; A$664.0 million total income; and 1.7% net bad debts as a share of TTV. These are half-year, company-reported metrics and must not be presented as FY26 full-year results. The 19 February 2026 update is available as a PDF at Zip 1H FY26 Results Update.
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Megaport’s prior-year EBITDA context
Megaport’s FY25 release reported A$62.3 million EBITDA, up from the prior period is not stated in the supplied figures, alongside A$227.1 million revenue and 107% NRR. EBITDA excludes interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation; it is not net profit or operating cash flow. Because the supplied FY26 highlights do not provide a fully aligned Megaport EBITDA, statutory-profit and cash-flow set, do not manufacture a margin comparison by dividing ARR by Zip’s income or by carrying FY25 EBITDA into FY26.
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What an aligned profitability review requires
For a proper annual comparison, retrieve both FY26 annual reports and place these lines side by side:
- Statutory revenue or total income and statutory operating profit.
- Net profit after tax and the reconciliation from statutory profit to any adjusted cash measure.
- Operating cash flow, capital expenditure and free cash flow.
- Interest expense, taxes, depreciation, amortisation and non-cash share-based compensation.
- The exact definition and reconciliation of each company’s “cash” metric.
Without that matched set, a conclusion about which business is financially stronger would exceed the disclosed evidence.
Business-specific risks to compare
Zip: credit performance, funding and volume sensitivity
Zip extends or facilitates consumer credit, so losses can rise if borrowers repay less reliably. Net bad debts of 1.8% of TTV in FY26 and 1.7% in the six months to 31 December 2025 are useful indicators of realised credit performance relative to payment volume. They do not measure every risk: they do not by themselves show provisioning methodology, recoveries, funding costs, fraud, regulatory exposure, geographic mix or lifetime loss expectations.
When reading Zip’s annual report, check delinquency and charge-off trends by product and region, provisioning assumptions, warehouse and other funding arrangements, interest-rate exposure, regulatory changes and the capital required to support receivables. Also ask whether customer and merchant growth is accompanied by stable engagement or by incentives that reduce unit economics.
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Megaport: recurring-demand durability and network investment
Megaport’s risk is tied to the durability and profitability of recurring connectivity. NRR of 107% in FY25 suggests that the measured customer cohort expanded overall during that year, but it is historical and does not guarantee FY26 performance. Review churn, downgrades, expansion, service gross margin, port utilisation, data-centre access costs, carrier and cloud-provider relationships, and the capital or operating spending needed to add capacity.
Network businesses can show attractive recurring revenue while still requiring substantial investment to reach new locations or support traffic growth. The relevant question is whether incremental services and ARR produce acceptable returns after those costs, not simply whether the service count is increasing.
Risk metrics are not interchangeable
Zip’s bad-debt percentage is a loss ratio against TTV. Megaport’s NRR is a cohort-retention measure. Neither can be converted into the other or used as a universal risk score. Keep each metric attached to its business model and test it against the company’s accounting disclosures.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Valuation: a date-stamped process, not a headline winner
No current share price, market capitalisation or valuation multiple is established in the supplied figures, so it is not possible to name a valuation winner responsibly. Prices and multiples change continuously. Use a single timestamp and the same currency when doing the calculation.
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- Record the closing ASX price for ZIP and MP1 on the same date.
- Obtain the latest diluted share count from each FY26 annual report or results filing, noting options, performance rights and any other potential dilution.
- Calculate equity market capitalisation as price multiplied by diluted shares, and record the exact share-count date.
- Add interest-bearing debt and lease liabilities, then subtract unrestricted cash to derive an enterprise-value view; disclose any company-specific treatment.
- Choose a denominator that fits the business: statutory revenue or income, EBITDA, free cash flow, or a recurring measure such as Megaport ARR. Do not use Zip TTV as if it were revenue.
- Label every multiple with its period, whether it is historical or forward, and whether the numerator is statutory or adjusted.
Metrics to inspect before drawing a conclusion
| Check | Zip questions | Megaport questions |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and debt | How are receivables funded, and what cash is unrestricted? | How much debt, lease liability and cash support network expansion? |
| Dilution | What options, rights or share-based awards could increase the share count? | What options, rights or awards could dilute owners? |
| Capital needs | Does growth require additional lending capacity or equity? | What spending is required for ports, data-centre access and capacity? |
| Cash conversion | How does cash EBTDA reconcile to operating cash flow and free cash flow? | How does EBITDA reconcile to operating cash flow and free cash flow? |
| Accounting quality | Which adjustments separate statutory results from the cash scorecard? | How does ARR reconcile to recognised revenue? |
The investor-relations pages for Zip and Megaport are the appropriate starting points for the latest filings. A valuation comparison should be refreshed whenever the share price, share count or reporting period changes.
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A practical comparison worksheet
Use one row per company and complete the worksheet only with figures carrying a period and definition:
- Business engine: write the customer action that creates revenue—credit and payment transactions for Zip; recurring network connections for Megaport.
- Primary scale unit: record Zip TTV, active customers and merchants; record Megaport ARR, services, enabled data centres and customers.
- Growth pair: place income or revenue beside the relevant operating unit and write the denominator for each growth rate.
- Economic quality: record Zip’s cash EBTDA, operating margin, cash net transaction margin and bad-debt ratio; record Megaport’s ARR, NRR and EBITDA only for the stated period.
- Risk test: list the adverse event that would damage each model—higher credit losses or funding pressure for Zip; churn, lower utilisation or expensive network expansion for Megaport.
- Financial strength: fill in cash, debt, leases, operating cash flow, capital expenditure and diluted shares from the same reporting date.
- Valuation: calculate the chosen multiple at one timestamp and explain why that denominator fits the company.
- Disconfirming evidence: write what would change your view, such as worsening loss rates, falling retention, weaker cash conversion or unexpectedly heavy capital needs.
This process produces an investment thesis that can be updated when a new result arrives instead of relying on a single growth percentage.
How to read management commentary
Management statements are useful context, but they are not independent verification. In Megaport’s 20 February 2025 H1 FY25 results release, CEO Michael Reid said: “During H1 FY25 we achieved top-line revenue growth across all regions while making ongoing investments to drive sustainable, long-term growth.” Treat that as the CEO’s description of H1 FY25, not as a current-period fact or proof that the investment produced a particular return. The release is at Megaport H1 FY25 results.
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In Zip’s 19 February 2026 1H FY26 update, CEO and Managing Director Cynthia Scott said: “Zip continues to increase profitability at scale, driving cash earnings growth of 85.6% and significant operating margin expansion during the half.” That is management commentary about the six months ended 31 December 2025; test it against the reconciliations, statutory accounts and cash-flow statement in the filing.
What the numbers can—and cannot—tell you
The FY26 scorecards establish that Zip generated substantial payment volume, income and cash earnings while reporting a defined bad-debt ratio. They establish that Megaport ended FY26 with at least A$395.2 million of ARR and a large service and data-centre footprint. They do not establish which share will outperform, whether either valuation is attractive today, or whether one balance sheet is safer. Those questions require a same-date price check and a matched reading of both annual reports.
For a disciplined investor, the comparison is therefore conditional: assess Zip on credit-adjusted payment economics and cash conversion; assess Megaport on recurring-revenue quality, retention and returns on network investment; then compare each company’s valuation with the risks and capital required to sustain its own growth.
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