Verisk cuts 2025 revenue forecast below Wall Street estimates

Oct 29 (Reuters) - Data analytics firm Verisk Analytics VRSK.O cut its annual revenue forecast below Wall Street estimates on Wednesday, sending shares down 8.7% in premarket trading.

A slowdown in severe weather events weighed on demand for Verisk's catastrophe risk models, a key revenue driver for the data analytics firm, which help estimate the likelihood of and potential losses from natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes and floods, as well as man-made events worldwide.

The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season marks the first time in a decade when no hurricanes had made landfall in the United States through the end of September, according to AccuWeather.

"We did experience temporary factors including a historically low level of severe weather events which negatively impacted growth by approximately 1%," said Chief Financial Officer Elizabeth Mann.

The company cut its annual revenue forecast to be in the range of $3.05 billion to $3.08 billion, below analysts' average estimate of $3.12 billion according to data compiled by LSEG.

However, underwriting revenue in the third quarter increased 6.9% from a year earlier to $542 million, while claims revenue rose 3.6% as demand for the company's anti-fraud and casualty solutions grew.

In recent years, the company has leveraged AI to deliver deeper insights into emerging risks, improving underwriting and claims management.

The New Jersey-based company's consolidated third-quarter revenue rose 5.9% from a year earlier to $768 million.

On an adjusted basis, Verisk earned $240.9 million, or $1.72 per share, in the three months ended September 30, compared with $238.5 million, or $1.67 per share, a year earlier.

The stock has fallen nearly 15.7% so far this year, underperforming a 17.2% gain in the benchmark S&P 500 index .SPX.