Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.22 EPS

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.22, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $778.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $773.74 million. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 29.56% and a return on equity of 357.00%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. Verisk Analytics updated its FY 2026 guidance to 7.450-7.75 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Verisk Analytics’ conference call:

• Verisk reported solid 2025 results with organic constant-currency revenue up 6.6%, OCC adjusted EBITDA up 8.5%, crossed the $3 billion revenue mark, and provided 2026 guidance of $3.19–3.24B revenue and $7.45–7.75 adjusted EPS supporting continued growth expectations.
• The board approved a $1.5 billion accelerated share repurchase, raised the total repurchase authorization to $2.5 billion, and increased the dividend 11% to $2.00 per share, signaling a shareholder?friendly capital allocation stance.
• Verisk is pushing AI-led product innovation—launching XactGen and XactAI, running 35+ AI projects, and citing rapid adoption (e.g., XactXpert used by seven of the top ten homeowners insurers) while emphasizing its proprietary, regulatory?trusted datasets as a competitive moat.
• Management terminated the proposed acquisition of AccuLynx after an extended FTC review, removing an expected inorganic growth avenue and triggering the redemption of related $1.5 billion notes.
• Near-term headwinds remain: historically low weather activity and a government contract work stoppage pressured transactional revenues (Q4 transactional down 6.5%), and management expects Q1 2026 to be the sequential trough for revenue and growth rates.

Verisk Analytics Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRSK traded down $1.52 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $182.38. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 89,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,937,208. The business’s 50-day moving average is $209.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $231.15. The company has a market capitalization of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 28.28, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.42, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.20. Verisk Analytics has a 52-week low of $164.60 and a 52-week high of $322.92.

Verisk Analytics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a boost from Verisk Analytics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Verisk Analytics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.44%.

Verisk Analytics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Verisk Analytics

In other news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.54, for a total transaction of $65,862.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,131,738.10. This represents a 2.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new position in Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $130,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verisk Analytics by 612.7% during the third quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 506 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the period. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Verisk Analytics by 74.7% during the second quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 400 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC grew its stake in Verisk Analytics by 791.5% in the 4th quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 419 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in Verisk Analytics by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 321 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. 90.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSK has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised Verisk Analytics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $310.00 to $275.00 in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Argus cut Verisk Analytics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price objective on Verisk Analytics in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $240.86.

Key Headlines Impacting Verisk Analytics

Here are the key news stories impacting Verisk Analytics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — Verisk reported stronger-than-expected Q4 EPS and revenue (EPS beat and y/y revenue growth), which is the immediate catalyst for investor buying. Verisk Q4 Earnings Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Large $2.5 billion share buyback approved — board authorized repurchases (~10.1% of outstanding shares), signaling management believes shares are undervalued and returning cash to shareholders, a clear boost to EPS and stock sentiment. Buyback Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increased — quarterly payout raised ~11% to $0.50 (annualized yield ~1.1%), supporting income-minded investors and reinforcing the capital-return theme. Dividend Hike Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage initiated at Bank of America — a new institutional coverage can increase attention/liquidity; impact depends on the thesis and published targets. Coverage Initiation
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic focus on AI adoption and portfolio refocus — management highlights AI-driven product opportunities and portfolio reshaping that could support medium-term growth, but benefits will take time to materialize. Deep Dive on Strategy
• Negative Sentiment: FY2026 guidance came in below consensus — management set FY26 EPS $7.45–7.75 and revenue near $3.2B, short of Street estimates, which introduces growth concerns despite the Q4 beat. Guidance vs. Consensus
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price-target cut — JPMorgan trimmed its target to $220 from $260 (still an overweight rating), a reminder some analysts are tempering near-term upside despite the board’s buyback. Analyst Target Note

Verisk Analytics Company Profile

Verisk Analytics, Inc (NASDAQ: VRSK) is a data analytics and decision?support provider that helps organizations assess and manage risk. The company supplies data, predictive models and software to customers in insurance, reinsurance, financial services, government, energy and other commercial markets. Its offerings are designed to support underwriting, pricing, claims management, catastrophe modeling, fraud detection and regulatory compliance, enabling clients to make more informed operational and strategic decisions.

Verisk’s product portfolio combines large proprietary datasets with analytics platforms and industry?specific applications.