Pornhub is currently the largest adult entertainment platform in the world. According to data from SimilarWeb, Pornhub is the 20th most visited website in the entire world. SEMRush ranks it even higher, in 7th place.
Although Pornhub is secretive about its revenue and profit figures, the platform is likely very lucrative. As such, it’s no wonder that many investors are wondering how to invest in Pornhub.
Unfortunately for those who want to purchase stock in the popular adult video platform, Pornhub’s parent company is not publicly traded – there’s no Pornhub stock symbol and it’s not possible to purchase Pornhub stock at this time.
Key highlights:
- Pornhub is owned by Aylo, a privately owned adult entertainment conglomerate.
- Regular investors currently have no way of investing in Aylo or its portfolio of brands.
- There is no Pornhub stock price or stock symbol.
- Pornhub was previously owned by MindGeek, which was acquired by Aylo in 2023.
Who owns Pornhub?
Pornhub is controlled by Aylo, an adult entertainment industry conglomerate owned by private equity firm Ethical Capital Partners. The conglomerate also owns other popular brands such as Brazzers, RedTube, YouPorn, Twistys and Reality Kings.
As of 2023, Aylo had roughly 1,400 employees and the company’s portfolio of companies saw more than 130 million daily average visitors in total. The company is headquartered in Montreal, Canada, but it has a complex corporate structure with entities registered in several other countries (including Luxembourg, Cyprus, Germany, Ireland, the United Kingdom and more).
Aylo acquired MindGeek, the previous owner of Pornhub, in 2023. Following the acquisition, Aylo has sought to clean up the public image of MindGeek as the company was caught up in several controversies, perhaps most notably for its partnership with GirlsDoPorn, a pornography website that was found to have coerced women under false pretenses to appear in adult videos.
According to Aylo, they have implemented robust trust and safety measures with the goal of preventing abuse on its platforms. This includes the publishing of transparency reports, stricter verification requirements, parental controls and more.
Can you buy Pornhub stock?
Due to the adult entertainment industry’s controversial nature, it’s very rare to see companies from this sector in the stock market.
Like the vast majority of other major adult entertainment industry players, Aylo is a privately-held company, and it’s very unlikely that there will be a Pornhub IPO any time soon.
As such, there is no Pornhub stock available to purchase on the stock market. Regular investors currently have no way of investing in Pornhub or its parent company, Aylo.
Even if Aylo were to go public, it’s likely that it still wouldn’t be possible to invest in Pornhub specifically – you would likely have to buy Aylo stock, which would also encompass all of the other brands owned by the company.
The valuation of Aylo is not public knowledge – when the company acquired MindGeek in 2023, the terms of the deal were not disclosed publicly.
Aylo already has such a dominant presence in the adult entertainment industry that it seems unlikely they would need to raise a large amount of capital to expand, which is one of the main reasons why companies go public in the first place.
A company might also not want to go public because of the stricter reporting and auditing requirements that publicly-traded companies are subject to compared to privately-held companies.
Adult entertainment companies on the stock market
There’s very few companies you’ll be able to find on the stock market if you’re looking to get investment exposure to adult entertainment. Here are a few options you might find interesting:
- Playboy – Lifestyle and entertainment magazine famous for featuring nudity and sexual material.
- New Frontier Media – United States-based distributor of adult entertainment.
- Private Media Group – Sweden-based distributor of adult entertainment.
- RCI Hospitality Holdings – Operator of strip clubs, nightclubs and sports bars.
Sometimes, Reckitt Benckiser and Church & Dwight Company are also mentioned as “sex stocks”. This is because Reckitt Benckiser owns Durex and Church & Dwight Company owns Trojan. However, both companies also sell a broad range of other consumer goods, so they’re not great options for someone who wants to invest in the sex or adult entertainment industries.
The bottom line
The major players in the adult entertainment industry tend to be privately-owned companies, which makes them practically impossible for regular investors to access. For example, you can’t invest in Pornhub stock, and there is currently also no way to invest in OnlyFans stock.
Although there are some adult entertainment industry stocks available on the public market, investors aren’t exactly spoiled for choice. If you’re also interested in more mainstream stocks, make sure to check out our article highlighting the best stocks to buy now.
