S&P Global raises 2026 outlook and starts review of Capital IQ businesses

Third-quarter revenue came in at $3.68 billion, below the $3.72 billion expected, while the company lifted its profit outlook for the year.

S&P Global raised its full-year outlook for 2026 and said it is reviewing whether to separate part of its Market Intelligence unit. Third-quarter earnings per share were $4.58, $0.06 above expectations. Revenue was $3.68 billion, below the $3.72 billion expected.

Chief Executive Martina Cheung said rising demand for the company's benchmarks and intellectual property across credit, equity and commodities markets drove the quarter. She said the review of the Capital IQ business is about putting investment where the company is strongest.

The company now expects full-year revenue growth of 7.4 per cent to 8.4 per cent, up from 5.9 per cent to 7.9 per cent. Organic constant-currency growth, a measure that the company uses to strip out currency effects, is now expected at 7.5 per cent to 8.5 per cent, up from 6.0 per cent to 8.0 per cent. Adjusted earnings per share guidance rose to $17.70 to $17.95, from $17.50 to $17.75. Guidance for GAAP earnings per share, which follows standard accounting rules, fell to $16.25 to $16.50, from $16.35 to $16.60.

The company still expects to buy back more than $7 billion of its shares in 2026. It bought back $2.6 billion in the third quarter and more than $4 billion so far this year. The board authorized a quarterly cash dividend of $0.97 per share.

S&P Global has started a strategic review of alternatives, including a possible separation, for Capital IQ and related data businesses within Market Intelligence. It expects to keep RatingsDirect, RatingsXpress and Enterprise Solutions.

The higher adjusted outlook sits beside a lower GAAP outlook. A structural shift, likely tied to the Capital IQ review, may already be showing in the numbers, even as demand for credit, equity and commodities benchmarks strengthens. The review is also a different course from growing around the data business. S&P Global is weighing a separation. Compared with SLB this quarter, where the capital return story has been more straightforward, S&P Global's plan carries more change. Buybacks above $7 billion and a steady dividend suggest the company is funding that change from a position of strength rather than retreat.