TransUnion Raises 2026 Adjusted EPS Outlook After Q3 Revenue Rises 12%

TransUnion (TRU) raised its full-year adjusted diluted earnings-per-share guidance after third-quarter revenue increased 12%, supported by growth across U.S. financial services and international markets. The company maintained its 2026 revenue and adjusted EBITDA outlook despite higher interest rates and weaker mortgage activity, citing portfolio diversification, lower net interest expense and share repurchases.

Revenue for the quarter ended September 30 rose to $1.31 billion. Organic constant-currency revenue increased 8%, or about 5.5% excluding no-margin FICO mortgage royalties. Adjusted EBITDA grew 9% to $465 million, while adjusted diluted EPS advanced 14% to $1.25. TransUnion said revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS exceeded its guidance.

Adjusted EBITDA margin fell 90 basis points to 35.4%. The company attributed about 60 basis points of the decline to FICO mortgage royalties and roughly 40 basis points to underlying performance, partly offset by a 10-basis-point benefit from the Mexico acquisition.

U.S. financial services and international operations drive growth

U.S. Markets revenue rose 7% to $977 million on both a reported and organic constant-currency basis. Financial Services revenue increased 11%, or 5% excluding FICO mortgage royalties. Within that business, revenue excluding mortgage grew 5%, including increases of 13% in auto, 5% in consumer lending and 3% in card and banking.

Mortgage revenue climbed 21%, but increased 5% when the FICO royalty effect was excluded, even as inquiries declined about 16%. The royalty revenue carries no margin, making the underlying growth rate more indicative of the business’s earnings contribution.

Emerging Verticals revenue rose 6%, led by double-digit growth in insurance and the public sector. Insurance recorded its ninth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. TransUnion expects the business to generate more than $430 million of revenue in 2026 and anticipates at least high-single-digit growth, supported by credit, driving-history, marketing and fraud products. Consumer Interactive revenue declined 3%.

International revenue increased 30% on a reported basis to $339 million, reflecting a 21-percentage-point contribution from acquisitions and a one-point foreign-exchange headwind. Organic constant-currency growth was 10%, while adjusted EBITDA rose 39% to $156 million.

India delivered 18% organic constant-currency growth as volumes gradually improved and the company secured new business. Latin America also grew 18% organically, with double-digit gains in Brazil and Colombia, while the acquired Mexico operation performed ahead of TransUnion’s plan. Organic constant-currency revenue increased 7% in Canada, 5% in the U.K., 6% in Africa and 3% in Asia Pacific.

Full-year EPS outlook increased

TransUnion now expects 2026 adjusted diluted EPS of $4.81 to $4.88, up from its previous range of $4.75 to $4.83 and representing growth of 12% to 13%. Management attributed the change to lower net interest expense and recent share repurchases.

The company maintained full-year revenue guidance of $5.13 billion to $5.16 billion, representing reported growth of 12% to 13%. Organic constant-currency growth is expected to be 8% to 9%, or 5% to 6% excluding FICO mortgage royalties.

Adjusted EBITDA is projected at $1.81 billion to $1.83 billion, up 10% to 11%, with a margin of 35.2% to 35.4%. That implies a margin contraction of 60 to 80 basis points, including an approximately 80-basis-point drag from no-margin FICO royalties. Underlying margin performance is expected to range from flat to a 20-basis-point expansion, including growth investments and higher litigation costs.

For the fourth quarter, TransUnion forecast revenue of $1.26 billion to $1.29 billion, up 8% to 10%. Organic constant-currency growth is expected to range from 3% to 6%, or 3% to 5% excluding FICO mortgage royalties. The company expects mortgage inquiries to decline more than 20%, while non-mortgage revenue growth is projected to remain near the third quarter’s 5.5% rate.

Fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA is expected to be $450 million to $468 million, with adjusted diluted EPS of $1.15 to $1.22. Management said the company could perform at the high end of its full-year guidance if current conditions persist.

Capital returns and operating priorities

TransUnion repurchased about $243 million of shares through September and expects approximately $257 million of additional repurchases in the fourth quarter, bringing the full-year total to about $500 million. Its board increased the repurchase authorization by $1 billion to $2 billion, leaving roughly $1.5 billion available. The quarterly dividend was increased to $0.135 per share from $0.125.

The company’s leverage ratio stood at 2.5 times at the end of the quarter after it prepaid the remaining approximately $104 million of its Term Loan B-5 in September. TransUnion expects free cash flow conversion of more than 90% of adjusted net income for the year.

Management also highlighted continued investment in technology and product development. Most U.S. online and batch credit workloads have moved to the OneTru platform, with migrations expected to be largely completed by year-end. TransUnion launched more than 40 products and enhancements during the first nine months of 2026, which it estimates could generate about $350 million of revenue over three years.

Higher interest rates remain a key constraint, particularly for mortgage demand and affordability. Other uncertainties identified by the company include inflation, recession risk, tariffs and trade policy, geopolitical conflict, regulation, data security, litigation, customer retention and changes to mortgage credit-reporting requirements.

TransUnion estimated that a potential shift by the Federal Housing Finance Agency from tri-merge to bi-merge credit reporting would expose less than 1% of company revenue and less than 3% of adjusted diluted EPS. If all FHFA-regulated loans moved to bi-merge and the credit bureaus retained equal market share, the company estimated a direct impact of about $33 million in revenue excluding FICO royalties and approximately $0.15 in adjusted diluted EPS.