Moody's third quarter revenue beat estimates while soft transactional activity weighed on adjusted EPS

Moody's Corporation reported third quarter 2026 revenue of $2.02 billion, exceeding analyst expectations despite a slight contraction in its ratings business. Adjusted diluted EPS of $4.14 fell short of the $4.24 estimate as MIS transactional revenue faced a difficult year-over-year comparison against a record prior period.

Key Highlights

• Moody's Investors Service (MIS) revenue declined 1% to $1.1 billion, with transactional revenue of $714 million missing expectations due to lower leveraged finance issuance.
• Moody's Analytics (MA) segment grew 8% on an organic constant currency basis, driven by 10% ARR growth in Decision Solutions.
• Year-to-date operating cash flow reached $2.5 billion, a 21% increase that enabled the company to return $3.1 billion to shareholders.
• Management reaffirmed full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance of $16.50 to $17.00, signaling confidence in ongoing cost discipline and analytics momentum.