MSCI Reports Financial Results for Third Quarter and Nine Months 2026

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MSCI Inc. (“MSCI” or the “Company”) (NYSE: MSCI), a leading provider of critical decision support tools and services for the global investment community, today announced its financial results for the three months ended September 30, 2026 (“third quarter 2026”) and nine months ended September 30, 2026 (“nine months 2026”). Financial and Operational Highlights for Third Quarter 2026 (Note: Unless otherwise noted, percentage and other changes are relative to the three months ended September 30, 2025 (“third quarter 2025”) and Run Rate percentage changes are relative to September 30, 2025). Operating revenues of $892.0 million, up 12.4%; Organic operating revenue growth of 12.3% Recurring subscription revenues up 7.7%; Asset-based fees up 24.9% Operating margin of 56.3%; Adjusted EBITDA margin of 62.2% Diluted EPS of $4.86, up 14.4%; Adjusted EPS of $5.11, up 14.3% Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth of 8.7%; Retention Rate of 95.0% In third quarter 2026 and through October 19, 2026, a total of $627.2 million or 1,116,460 shares were repurchased at an average repurchase price of $561.81 Approximately $147.5 million in dividends were paid to shareholders in third quarter 2026; Cash dividend of $2.05 per share declared by MSCI Board of Directors for fourth quarter 2026 Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended in millions, except per share data Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, (unaudited) 2026 2025 % Change 2026 2025 % Change Operating revenues $ 892.0 $ 793.4 12.4 % $ 2,609.8 $ 2,311.9 12.9 % Operating income $ 502.1 $ 447.6 12.2 % $ 1,446.5 $ 1,249.9 15.7 % Operating margin % 56.3 % 56.4 % 55.4 % 54.1 % Net income $ 351.0 $ 325.3 7.9 % $ 1,099.0 $ 917.6 19.8 % Diluted EPS $ 4.86 $ 4.25 14.4 % $ 15.09 $ 11.87 27.1 % Adjusted EPS $ 5.11 $ 4.47 14.3 % $ 14.59 $ 12.63 15.5 % Adjusted EBITDA $ 554.8 $ 494.4 12.2 % $ 1,598.0 $ 1,394.4 14.6 % Adjusted EBITDA margin % 62.2 % 62.3 % 61.2 % 60.3 % “In the third quarter MSCI delivered strong financial and operating metrics, including our best-ever recurring net-new sales in Analytics and Private Capital Solutions, our best-ever Q3 recurring net-new sales in Index, and another record quarter for asset-based fees. Among client segments and regions, we achieved our best-ever quarter both with asset owners and in Asia-Pacific,” said Henry A. Fernandez, Chairman and CEO of MSCI. “Thanks to these results, we entered Q4 with solid momentum and strong client engagement across our franchise. Notably, we have seen robust demand for both our traditional and newer solutions. All of this shows that MSCI is expanding our foundational, mission-critical role in global investing even as we transform our business for today’s AI-first world,” Fernandez added. Third Quarter Consolidated Results Operating Revenues: Operating revenues were $892.0 million, up 12.4%. Organic operating revenue growth was 12.3%. The $98.6 million increase was the result of $49.1 million in higher asset-based fees, $44.5 million in higher recurring subscription revenues and $5.0 million in higher non-recurring revenues. Run Rate and Retention Rate: Total Run Rate at September 30, 2026 was $3,571.9 million, up 12.1%. Recurring subscription Run Rate increased by $209.5 million, and asset-based fees Run Rate increased by $175.9 million. Recurring subscription Run Rate growth was primarily driven by asset managers, hedge funds and banking & brokerages client segments, and record ETF AUM linked to MSCI indexes. Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth was 8.7%. Retention Rate in third quarter 2026 was 95.0%, compared to 94.7% in third quarter 2025. Expenses: Total operating expenses were $389.9 million, up 12.8%. Adjusted EBITDA expenses were $337.2 million, up 12.8%, primarily reflecting higher non-compensation costs as a result of higher information technology costs, professional fees and market data costs. Additionally, we saw higher compensation and benefits costs primarily driven by higher incentive compensation and salaries, partially offset by increased capitalization of costs related to internally developed software projects. During the third quarter of 2026 we recognized $6.1 million of Adjusted EBITDA expenses and $1.9 million of intangible asset amortization expense related to the Compass, Vantager, PM Insights and First Street acquisitions. Total operating expenses excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations (“ex-FX”) and adjusted EBITDA expenses ex-FX increased 13.2% and 13.4%, respectively. Operating Income: Operating income was $502.1 million, up 12.2%. Operating income margin in third quarter 2026 was 56.3%, compared to 56.4% in third quarter 2025. Headcount: As of September 30, 2026, we had 6,259 employees, reflecting a 0.1% increase, with 29% and 71% of employees located in developed market and emerging market locations, respectively. Other Expense (Income), Net: Other expense (income), net was $74.2 million, up 45.2%, primarily driven by higher interest expense as a result of higher debt levels. Income Taxes: The effective tax rate was 18.0% in third quarter 2026 compared to 17.9% in third quarter 2025. The increase was primarily driven by a lower operating tax rate in the current year that was offset by smaller net discrete tax benefits compared to the prior year. Net Income: As a result of the factors described above, net income was $351.0 million, up 7.9%. Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA was $554.8 million, up 12.2%. Adjusted EBITDA margin in third quarter 2026 was 62.2%, compared to 62.3% in third quarter 2025. Index Segment: Table 1A: Results (unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, in millions 2026 2025 % Change 2026 2025 % Change Operating revenues: Recurring subscriptions $ 269.5 $ 242.5 11.1 % $ 786.7 $ 711.5 10.6 % Asset-based fees 246.6 197.5 24.9 % 704.2 559.0 26.0 % Non-recurring 16.5 11.1 48.6 % 49.0 37.2 31.7 % Total operating revenues 532.6 451.1 18.1 % 1,539.9 1,307.7 17.8 % Adjusted EBITDA expenses 120.2 100.9 19.1 % 354.5 315.7 12.3 % Adjusted EBITDA $ 412.4 $ 350.2 17.8 % $ 1,185.4 $ 992.0 19.5 % Adjusted EBITDA margin % 77.4 % 77.6 % 77.0 % 75.9 % Index operating revenues were $532.6 million, up 18.1%. The $81.5 million increase was primarily driven by $49.1 million in higher asset-based fees and $27.0 million in higher recurring subscription revenues. Organic operating revenue growth for Index was 18.0%. Index Run Rate as of September 30, 2026, was $2.1 billion, up 16.5%. The $294.8 million increase was comprised of a $175.9 million increase in asset-based fees Run Rate and a $118.9 million increase in recurring subscription Run Rate. The increase in asset-based fees Run Rate was primarily driven by higher AUM in both ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes. The increase in recurring subscription Run Rate was primarily driven by growth from market cap-weighted and custom Index products. The increase reflected growth across all client segments, primarily driven by growth from asset managers, banking & brokerages and hedge funds. The increase also reflected growth across all regions. Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth for Index was 11.7%. Analytics Segment: Table 1B: Results (unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, in millions 2026 2025 % Change 2026 2025 % Change Operating revenues: Recurring subscriptions $ 188.1 $ 178.3 5.5 % $ 557.2 $ 517.8 7.6 % Non-recurring 2.9 3.9 (25.6 )% 13.2 14.3 (7.7 )% Total operating revenues 191.0 182.2 4.8 % 570.4 532.1 7.2 % Adjusted EBITDA expenses 105.3 92.1 14.3 % 313.9 273.4 14.8 % Adjusted EBITDA $ 85.7 $ 90.1 (4.9 )% $ 256.5 $ 258.7 (0.9 )% Adjusted EBITDA margin % 44.9 % 49.4 % 45.0 % 48.6 % Analytics operating revenues were $191.0 million, up 4.8%. Organic operating revenue growth for Analytics was 5.2%. Analytics Run Rate as of September 30, 2026, was $793.5 million, up 6.9%. The increase of $51.1 million was primarily driven by growth in both Equity Analytics and Multi-Asset Class products, and reflected growth across all regions. The increase primarily reflected growth in the hedge funds, asset owners and asset managers client segments. Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth for Analytics was 7.5%. Sustainability and Climate Segment: Table 1C: Results (unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, in millions 2026 2025 % Change 2026 2025 % Change Operating revenues: Recurring subscriptions $ 92.2 $ 88.7 3.9 % $ 273.6 $ 258.4 5.9 % Non-recurring 1.5 1.4 7.1 % 3.9 5.2 (25.0 )% Total operating revenues 93.7 90.1 4.0 % 277.5 263.6 5.3 % Adjusted EBITDA expenses 55.5 55.4 0.2 % 170.7 173.4 (1.6 )% Adjusted EBITDA $ 38.2 $ 34.7 10.1 % $ 106.8 $ 90.2 18.4 % Adjusted EBITDA margin % 40.8 % 38.6 % 38.5 % 34.3 % Sustainability and Climate operating revenues were $93.7 million, up 4.0%. Organic operating revenue growth for Sustainability and Climate was 2.2%. Sustainability and Climate Run Rate as of September 30, 2026, was $384.8 million, up 3.8%. The $14.0 million increase primarily reflects growth in Climate products with contributions primarily from Americas and EMEA, partially offset by cancellations. Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth for Sustainability and Climate was 2.4%. All Other – Private Assets: Table 1D: Results (unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, Sep. 30, in millions 2026 2025 % Change 2026 2025 % Change Operating revenues: Recurring subscriptions $ 73.8 $ 69.6 6.0 % $ 219.7 $ 206.7 6.3 % Non-recurring 0.9 0.4 125.0 % 2.3 1.8 27.8 % Total operating revenues 74.7 70.0 6.7 % 222.0 208.5 6.5 % Adjusted EBITDA expenses 56.2 50.6 11.1 % 172.7 155.0 11.4 % Adjusted EBITDA $ 18.5 $ 19.4 (4.6 )% $ 49.3 $ 53.5 (7.9 )% Adjusted EBITDA margin % 24.8 % 27.6 % 22.2 % 25.7 % All Other – Private Assets operating revenues, which reflect the Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions operating segments, were $74.7 million, up 6.7%. Organic operating revenue growth for All Other – Private Assets was 6.7%. All Other – Private Assets Run Rate was $310.9 million as of September 30, 2026, up 8.9%. The $25.5 million increase was primarily driven by Private Capital Solutions related to Total Plan Manager, Private Capital Transparency Data and Private Capital Intel products. The increase reflected growth across all regions and was primarily driven by the asset owners and asset managers client segments. Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth for All Other – Private Assets was 9.2%. Select Balance Sheet Items and Capital Allocation Cash Balances and Outstanding Debt: Cash and cash equivalents were $261.0 million as of September 30, 2026. MSCI typically seeks to maintain minimum cash balances globally of approximately $225.0 million to $275.0 million for general operating purposes. Total principal amounts of debt outstanding as of September 30, 2026, were $6.8 billion. The total debt to net income ratio (based on trailing twelve months net income) was 4.9x. The total debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio (based on trailing twelve months adjusted EBITDA) was 3.2x. MSCI seeks to maintain total debt to adjusted EBITDA in a target range of 3.0x to 3.5x. Capex and Cash Flow: Capex was $50.7 million, and net cash provided by operating activities decreased by 3.0% to $436.1 million, primarily reflecting higher cash paid for interest, partially offset by higher cash collections from customers. Free cash flow (non-GAAP) for third quarter 2026 was down 8.9% to $385.4 million. Share Count and Share Repurchases: Weighted average diluted shares outstanding were 72.3 million in third quarter 2026, down 5.6% year-over-year. Total share repurchases during the quarter were $552.3 million or 1.0 million shares at an average repurchase price of $562.92. Total shares outstanding as of September 30, 2026 were 71.7 million. As of October 19, 2026, a total of approximately $0.9 billion remains available on the outstanding share repurchase authorization. Dividends: Approximately $147.5 million in dividends were paid to shareholders in third quarter 2026. On October 19, 2026, the MSCI Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $2.05 per share for fourth quarter 2026, payable on November 27, 2026 to shareholders of record as of the close of trading on November 13, 2026. First Street Acquisition: On August 3, 2026, MSCI completed the acquisition of First Street Technology, Inc. (“First Street”), a provider of physics-based physical climate risk data and analytics. The aggregate purchase price was $122.6 million, net of cash acquired. The total consideration includes the fair value of potential additional cash payments during the two years following closing, contingent upon the achievement of specified revenue thresholds. First Street’s financial results are reported within the Sustainability and Climate operating segment. Full-Year 2026 Guidance MSCI’s guidance for the year ending December 31, 2026 (“Full-Year 2026”) is based on assumptions about a number of factors, in particular related to macroeconomic factors and the capital markets. These assumptions are subject to uncertainty, and actual results for the year could differ materially from our current guidance, including as a result of the uncertainties, risks and assumptions discussed in the “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” sections of our Annual Report on Form 10-K, as updated in quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K filed or furnished with the SEC. See “Forward-Looking Statements” below. Guidance Item Current Guidance for Full-Year 2026 Prior Guidance for Full-Year 2026 Operating Expense $1,535 to $1,575 million $1,535 to $1,575 million Adjusted EBITDA Expense $1,340 to $1,370 million $1,340 to $1,370 million Interest Expense (including amortization of financing fees)1 $288 to $291 million $282 to $286 million Depreciation & Amortization Expense $195 to $205 million $195 to $205 million Effective Tax Rate2 18.0% to 19.5% 18.0% to 20.0% Capital Expenditures $160 to $170 million $160 to $170 million Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities $1,655 to $1,705 million $1,655 to $1,705 million Free Cash Flow $1,485 to $1,545 million $1,485 to $1,545 million 1 A portion of our annual interest expense is from our variable rate indebtedness under our revolving credit facility, while the majority is from fixed rate senior unsecured notes. Changes to the secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”) and indebtedness levels can cause our annual interest expense to vary. 2 Excludes the impact of a multi-phase internal legal entity restructuring that commenced in fourth quarter 2025 and was completed in the first quarter 2026. In connection with the completion of the subsequent phase of the restructuring in first quarter 2026, we recognized a tax benefit of $88 million, which is excluded from applicable non-GAAP measures when presented. Conference Call Information MSCI’s senior management will review the third quarter 2026 results on Tuesday, October 20, 2026 at 11:00 AM Eastern Time. To listen to the live event via webcast, visit the events and presentations section of MSCI’s Investor Relations website, https://ir.msci.com/events-and-presentations. Participants who wish to join via telephone should click here to register in advance. Registered participants will receive an email confirmation with a unique PIN to access the conference call. The earnings call webcast will include an accompanying slide presentation that can be accessed through MSCI’s Investor Relations website. About MSCI Inc. MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI) strengthens global markets by connecting participants across the financial ecosystem with a common language. Our research-based data, analytics and indexes, supported by advanced technology, set standards for global investors and help our clients understand risks and opportunities so they can make better decisions and unlock innovation. We serve asset managers and owners, private-market sponsors and investors, hedge funds, wealth managers, banks, insurers and corporates. To learn more, please visit www.msci.com. MSCI#IR Forward-Looking StatementsRead the full story here

MSCI Reports Financial Results for Third Quarter and Nine Months 2026

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