Equifax Earnings Call Highlights AI-Fueled Growth Momentum

Equifax ((EFX)) has held its Q4 earnings call. Read on for the main highlights of the call.

Equifax’s latest earnings call struck an upbeat tone, with management stressing strong execution, record free cash flow and robust shareholder returns despite ongoing macro headwinds. Leaders framed 2025 as a year where AI-driven innovation and data scale increasingly powered growth, while carefully disentangling FICO mortgage pass-through effects to spotlight solid underlying margins.

Full-Year Results Showcase Cash Machine Performance

Equifax reported 2025 revenue of $6.075 billion and adjusted EPS of $7.65, underpinned by free cash flow of roughly $1.1–$1.13 billion. The company delivered record cash conversion of about 120%, comfortably above its long-term 95% framework, underscoring strong earnings quality and efficient working-capital management.

Q4 Delivers Upside on Revenue and Profitability

Fourth-quarter revenue reached $1.551 billion, up 9% year over year and about $30 million above the midpoint of prior guidance. Adjusted EPS of $2.09 topped expectations, while EBITDA of $508 million produced a 32.8% margin, showing resilient operating leverage in a choppy macro backdrop.

New-Product Vitality Hits Record Levels

Equifax highlighted record new-product vitality of 15% for 2025, rising to 17% in Q4 and representing roughly $900 million in new-product revenue. Management said the strong cadence of launches should continue into 2026, signaling a sustained pipeline of innovations that can drive organic growth above market trends.

AI And Cloud Platforms Power Structural Gains

All new models launched in 2025 were powered by efx.ai and delivered about a 30% performance lift over legacy models, according to management. With more than 400 AI patents, extensive use of Google Gemini and platforms like Angetic AI and Ignite, Equifax sees both faster product development and targeted annual run-rate cost savings of roughly $75 million over the next three years.

Workforce Solutions Extends Its Lead

The Workforce Solutions unit grew about 6% for the year and 9% in Q4, with verification services up 8% for 2025 and more than 10% in the fourth quarter. EBITDA margins hovered around 51%, while Twin data scaled to more than 200 million active records and over 800 million total records, reinforcing EWS as a high-margin growth engine.

USIS Delivers Double-Digit Growth With Mortgage Tailwind

U.S. Information Solutions posted roughly 10% revenue growth for 2025 with margins expanding about 70 basis points to around 35.2%. In Q4, USIS revenue climbed 12%, driven by roughly 33% growth in mortgage revenue helped by pricing actions, Twin Indicator adoption and the impact of FICO-related price dynamics.

Capital Returns And Balance Sheet Strategy Stand Out

Equifax returned $1.2 billion to shareholders in 2025, including about $927 million of share repurchases and $233 million in dividends, retiring more than 4 million shares. With 2026 free cash flow guided above $1.0 billion and at least 100% cash conversion, management sees about $1.5 billion of capacity for M&A and further buybacks.

Clear Guidance With Ex-FICO Lens

For 2026, Equifax guided to revenue growth of about 10.6% at the midpoint and EPS of $8.50, roughly 11% higher than 2025. Management will provide both reported and ex-FICO views, noting that ex-FICO revenue is expected to grow about 7%, EBITDA should rise around 10% and underlying margins should expand even as FICO royalties dilute reported percentages.

Mortgage And Hiring Markets Remain Stubborn Headwinds

The company noted that the U.S. mortgage market fell about 7% in 2025 and the hiring market declined roughly 2%, collectively shaving around 100 basis points from revenue growth. For 2026, management assumes the mortgage market will be down low single digits absent a refinancing wave, keeping a drag on growth despite Equifax’s share gains.

FICO Pass-Throughs Distort Margins But Not Economics

FICO mortgage royalties, which are a zero-profit pass-through, represented around 3% of revenue in 2025 and are expected to reach about 6% in 2026. Management estimates these payments reduced reported EBITDA margins by more than 100 basis points in 2025 and could weigh by about 200 basis points in 2026, prompting the push for ex-FICO metrics.

International Softness In Canada And The U.K.

International operations grew around 5% in Q4 on a constant-currency basis, but performance fell slightly short of expectations, mainly in Canada and the U.K. Management cited weakness in debt-management markets across Europe and Canada and baked more cautious international assumptions into the 2026 outlook.

One-Time Charges And Near-Term Cost Pressure

Equifax recorded a $30 million Q4 charge tied to a settlement for certain inquiry-dispute claims, which it expects insurers to reimburse over time. Fourth-quarter margins were also clipped by higher incentive compensation, which management said should normalize starting in the first quarter of 2026.

Regulatory And Model-Shift Uncertainties Create Optionality

The company flagged uncertainty around when VantageScore might be accepted for agency mortgage originations, with 2026 guidance assuming no meaningful conversion. Likewise, the timing and breadth of adoption of FICO’s direct model by tri-merge resellers is unclear, so management framed both factors as sources of guidance conservatism and potential upside.

Forward Guidance Signals Confident, AI-Led Expansion

For 2026, Equifax expects revenue of about $6.7 billion, EBITDA near $2.122 billion and EPS around $8.50, alongside free cash flow above $1.0 billion and at least 100% cash conversion. Business-unit outlooks point to high-single-digit growth at EWS, mid-teens growth at USIS and mid-single-digit international growth, all underpinned by expanding ex-FICO margins and growing mortgage exposure.

Equifax’s earnings call painted a picture of a data and AI leader balancing cyclical pressures with structural growth levers. While mortgage softness, FICO pass-throughs and international pockets of weakness remain watchpoints, record cash generation, strong product vitality and disciplined capital deployment suggest the company is well positioned heading into 2026.