Q1 25 EPS
$4.00
BEAT +2.46%
Est. $3.90
Q1 25 Revenue
$745.8M
BEAT +0.18%
Est. $744.5M
vs S&P Since Q1 25
-33.9%
TRAILING MARKET
MSCI +5.3% vs S&P +39.3%
Market Reaction
Did MSCI Beat Earnings? Q1 2025 Results
MSCI kicked off 2025 with a clean beat on both top and bottom lines, reporting first-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.00 against a consensus estimate of $3.90, a 2.46% beat, while revenue of $745.83 million edged past expectations by 0.18% and climbed 9.7%… Read more MSCI kicked off 2025 with a clean beat on both top and bottom lines, reporting first-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.00 against a consensus estimate of $3.90, a 2.46% beat, while revenue of $745.83 million edged past expectations by 0.18% and climbed 9.7% year-over-year. The standout driver was the Index segment, which generated $421.74 million in revenue, up 12.8%, fueled by an 18.1% surge in asset-based fees as ETF assets under management linked to MSCI equity indexes swelled to $1.78 trillion on the back of $42.00 billion in net cash inflows during the quarter. Operating margins expanded to 50.6% from 49.9% a year ago, reflecting disciplined cost management even as the company broadened its footprint in climate analytics and wealth management. Client retention improved sharply to 95.3% from 92.8%, signaling durable demand for what CEO Henry Fernandez described as mission-critical products across all market environments. MSCI maintained its full-year 2025 free cash flow guidance of $1.40 billion to $1.46 billion, underscoring management's confidence in the business despite broader market uncertainty.
Key Takeaways
- • Recurring subscription revenue growth of 7.7% driven by market-cap weighted Index products
- • Asset-based fees up 18.1% driven by increased average AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes
- • Retention Rate improved to 95.3% from 92.8% year-over-year
- • Net new recurring subscription sales grew 33.2% to $26.1 million
- • Organic recurring subscription Run Rate growth of 8.2%
- • Total Run Rate reached $2.98 billion, up 9.3%
- • Strong run-rate growth with asset owners, hedge funds, banks and broker dealers, and wealth managers
- • Lower effective tax rate of 12.8% vs. 13.5% driven by excess tax benefits on stock compensation vesting
MSCI YoY Financials
Q1 2025 vs Q1 2024, source: SEC Filings
MSCI Revenue by Segment
With YoY comparisons, source: SEC Filings
“In the first quarter, MSCI delivered strong financial metrics, durable retention, and solid asset-based-fee revenue growth. At the product level, we drove recurring net new sales growth across Index, Analytics, and Private Assets. At the client-segment level, we posted strong run-rate growth with asset owners, hedge funds, banks and broker dealers, and wealth managers.”
— Henry A. Fernandez, Q1 2025 Earnings Press Release
MSCI Earnings Trends
MSCI vs Market 30 Day Price Reactions
30-day stock return vs benchmark after each earnings
MSCI EPS Trend
Earnings per share: estimate vs actual
MSCI Revenue Trend
Quarterly revenue: estimate vs actual
MSCI Quarterly Results
5 quarters of earnings data
| Quarter | EPS Est. | EPS Act. | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. Surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 26 BEAT | $4.46 | $4.55 | +2.13% | $850.8M | +1.12% |
| Q4 25 BEAT FY | $4.59 | $4.66 | +1.56% | $822.5M | -0.13% |
| FY Full Year | $17.20 | $17.28 | +0.47% | $3.13B | -0.06% |
| Q3 25 BEAT | $4.37 | $4.47 | +2.33% | $793.4M | -0.55% |
| Q2 25 BEAT | $4.11 | $4.17 | +1.53% | $772.7M | +1.10% |
| Q1 25 BEAT | $3.90 | $4.00 | +2.46% | $745.8M | +0.18% |