Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

MSCI (MSCI - Free Report) came out with quarterly earnings of $4.94 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.9 per share. This compares to earnings of $4.17 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +0.82%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this maker of software tools to help portfolio managers make investment decisions would post earnings of $4.4 per share when it actually produced earnings of $4.55, delivering a surprise of +3.41%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times.

MSCI, which belongs to the Zacks Financial - Investment Management industry, posted revenues of $867 million for the quarter ended June 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.90%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $772.68 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters.

The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call.

MSCI shares have added about 9% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 8.7%.

What's Next for MSCI?While MSCI has outperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock?

There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.

Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for MSCI was favorable. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to outperform the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $5.13 on $882.29 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $19.85 on $3.51 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year.

Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Financial - Investment Management is currently in the top 30% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.

One other stock from the same industry, T. Rowe Price (TROW - Free Report) , is yet to report results for the quarter ended June 2026. The results are expected to be released on July 31.

This financial services firm is expected to post quarterly earnings of $2.52 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +12.5%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 5.2% higher over the last 30 days to the current level.

T. Rowe Price's revenues are expected to be $1.92 billion, up 11.6% from the year-ago quarter.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI) is enhancing its global physical climate risk capabilities with the acquisition of First Street, a leading provider of physics-based climate risk data and analytics for every property in the world.

Investors, financial institutions and companies are demanding physical climate risk insights embedded directly into investment and risk workflows to inform critical financial decision making, as climate-related physical risks accelerate globally. First Street’s own research shows that companies have become more than 6.5 times as likely to issue profit warnings following extreme weather events in the past two decades.i

The integration of First Street’s data and tools into MSCI’s extensive climate and geospatial solutions will enable quantified assessments of financially relevant physical climate risk at any geographic coordinate and across more than 2 billion structures worldwide.ii

These additional capabilities can help institutions meet rising regulatory and reporting requirements while supporting physical risk management and adaptation and resilience planning.

First Street provides multi-hazard models that incorporate climate signals and are validated against observed events to assess current and future physical risk exposure, asset damage and business interruption.

Powered by proprietary data on building characteristics, infrastructure dependencies and site-level adaptation, these models translate physical hazards into measurable financial impact estimates. The interactive platform delivers these insights through visualizations and on-demand, customizable analytics for individual properties, companies and portfolios within one unified AI-enabled workflow.

As extreme weather and geopolitical disruption are making asset location a critical factor in evaluating investment risk and opportunity, the ability of banks, insurance companies, asset managers, asset owners and companies to analyze and act upon location-based risks could be a key determinant of future success. This trend is reflected in major European central banks’ use of MSCI data to enable them to better identify climate risks across their loan books.

The acquisition further strengthens MSCI’s long-established leadership in climate investment tools and research, building on decades of expertise in geospatial intelligence, climate scenario analysis and transition finance to deliver greater transparency, innovation and scalability.

Richard Mattison, Head of Sustainability and Climate at MSCI, said: “The financial consequences of where assets are located have come into sharp focus due to the recent geopolitical turmoil, supply chain disruption and the growing impact of climate hazards. In response, investors, lenders and insurers are increasingly looking for more in-depth and actionable analysis of the physical risk held in the footprint of a company’s operations and investments.

“The integration of First Street data into MSCI’s existing geospatial capabilities will enable clients to be better informed about their changing risk exposures and translate that directly into financial decision-making.”

Matthew Eby, Founder and CEO at First Street, said: “First Street was built on the simple conviction that every financial decision should account for a changing climate. We built the Climate Risk Financial Modeling (CRFM) category to turn that conviction into reality. Joining MSCI puts our property-level science in front of the world’s leading investors, lenders and insurers and turns climate risk from a disclosure exercise into a daily input for how capital is priced and allocated.”

The transaction consideration includes a cash payment of $120 million at closing (subject to customary closing adjustments), with the potential for additional cash payments during the first two years following closing if certain revenue thresholds are achieved. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Following closing, First Street's financial results will be reported within MSCI's Sustainability and Climate segment.

About MSCI

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. #IR

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or performance and involve risks that may cause actual results or performance to differ materially, and you should not place undue reliance on them. Risks that could affect results or performance are in MSCI’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year ended on December 31 that is filed with the SEC. MSCI does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements. No information herein constitutes investment advice or should be relied on as such. MSCI grants no right or license to use its products or services without an appropriate license. MSCI MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION HEREIN AND DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

i The New Cost of Doing Business, 16 Risk Assessment, by First Street, March 2026.
ii Since September 2025.

More News From MSCI Inc.