Moody's Corporation: Miss — EPS $4.14, Revenue $2.02B
Earnings MissQ3 2026 · Pre-market
@trystockwhiz
Did Moody's Corporation (MCO) beat earnings today?
No, Moody's Corporation (MCO) missed Wall Street analyst expectations for Q3 2026, reporting lower-than-expected EPS and lower-than-expected revenue.
Earnings Per Share-2.59% surprise
$4.14Actual
Expected: $4.25
vs. year ago +6.0%
Total Revenue-2.60% surprise
$2.02BActual
Expected: $2.08B
vs. year ago +1.0%
Released Oct 21 · 7:03 AM ET
Earning Report
| Metric | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | YoY Change % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.02B | $2.01B | 1.0 |
| Revenue detail — reported lines | |||
| └─MA Revenue | $936.00M | $909.00M | 3.0 |
| └─Banking | $118.00M | $140.00M | -16.0 |
| └─Insurance | $186.00M | $171.00M | 9.0 |
| └─KYC | $122.00M | $113.00M | 8.0 |
| └─Total Decision Solutions | $426.00M | $424.00M | 0.0 |
| └─Research and Insights | $260.00M | $252.00M | 3.0 |
| └─Data and Information | $250.00M | $233.00M | 7.0 |
| └─MA Recurring Revenue | $928.00M | $875.00M | 6.0 |
| └─MIS Revenue | $1.09B | $1.10B | -1.0 |
| └─Corporate Finance | $530.00M | $576.00M | -8.0 |
| └─Structured Finance | $153.00M | $146.00M | 5.0 |
| └─Financial Institutions | $213.00M | $208.00M | 2.0 |
| └─Public, Project and Infrastructure Finance | $179.00M | $161.00M | 11.0 |
| └─Total ratings revenue | $1.07B | $1.09B | -1.0 |
| └─MIS Other | $12.00M | $7.00M | 71.0 |
| └─MIS Recurring Revenue | $373.00M | $345.00M | 8.0 |
| └─MIS Transaction Revenue | $714.00M | $753.00M | -5.0 |
| Net Income | $736.00M | $647.00M | 13.8 |
| GAAP Basic EPS | $4.25 | $3.61 | 17.7 |
| GAAP Diluted EPS | $4.24 | $3.60 | 18.0 |
| Adjusted Diluted EPS | $4.14 | $3.92 | 6.0 |
Financial Outlook / Guidance
| Metric | Next Quarter Outlook | FY 2026 Outlook |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | — | Increase in the high-single-digit percent range |
| Operating Expenses | — | Increase in the mid-single-digit percent range |
| Operating Margin | — | 44%-45% |
| Adjusted Operating Margin | — | 52%-53% |
| Interest Expense, Net | — | $220M-$240M |
| Non-operating (Expense)/Income | — | $70M-$90M |
| Diluted EPS | — | $16.00-$16.50 |
| Adjusted Diluted EPS | — | $16.50-$17.00 |
| Operating Cash Flow | — | $3.15B-$3.35B |
| Free Cash Flow | — | $2.7B-$2.9B |
| Share Repurchases | — | Up to $3.0B |
| MA Revenue | — | Increase in the mid-single-digit percent range |
| MA Organic Constant Currency Revenue | — | Increase in the high-single-digit percent range |
| ARR | — | Increase in the high-single-digit percent range |
| MA Adjusted Operating Margin | — | 34%-35% |
| MIS Revenue | — | Increase in the high-single-digit percent range |
| MIS Adjusted Operating Margin | — | Approximately 65% |
| Depreciation and amortization | — | Approximately 6% |
| Restructuring | — | Approximately 1.5% |
| Reserve for international non-income tax obligation | — | Approximately 0.5% |
| Duplicate rent - NY HQ | — | Negligible |
| Capital expenditures | — | Approximately $450M |
| Acquisition-related intangible amortization | — | Approximately $0.91 |
| Gain on business divestitures | — | Approximately ($1.18) |
| Operating Growth | — | 2.5%-3.5% |
| Incentive and Stock-Based Compensation | — | Approximately 1% |
| Acquired and Divested Companies | — | Approximately (1.5)% |
Business Highlights
- ➤Returned approximately $3.1B to shareholders year-to-date through repurchases and dividends.
- ➤Repurchased approximately $2.6B of shares year-to-date.
- ➤Declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share.
- ➤Decision Solutions ARR growth was led by Insurance and KYC.
- ➤Investment Grade activity benefited from technology-sector financing and hyperscaler investments.
- ➤Public, Project and Infrastructure Finance benefited from U.S. public finance and data-center financing.
- ➤Private-markets momentum supported funds and asset-management activity.
- ➤Structured Finance issuance increased across ABS, RMBS and Covered Bonds.
- ➤Moody’s has approximately 16,000 employees across more than 40 countries.
Management Commentary
Rob Fauber, President and Chief Executive Officer, Moody’s Corporation
“Moody’s delivered another quarter of strong profitability and earnings growth, with disciplined execution and healthy cash generation amidst an increasingly complex operating environment. It’s in markets like these that our customers truly value our independent insights and connected intelligence.”