S&P Global beats Q1 estimates as ratings and indices drive 10% revenue growth

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) reported first-quarter 2026 financial results that exceeded Wall Street expectations on Tuesday, April 28, fueled by a resurgence in credit ratings activity and continued dominance in the passive investing market.

The New York-based analytics giant posted revenue of $4.17 billion, a 10% increase year-over-year, surpassing the $4.08 billion analyst consensus.

The company’s adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) rose 14% to $4.97, beating the Zacks consensus estimate of $4.82.

On a GAAP basis, net income reached $1.4 billion, or $4.69 per diluted share.

The robust performance was underpinned by significant margin expansion, with the adjusted operating profit margin widening by 100 basis points to 51.8%.

Growth was led by the Ratings segment, where revenue jumped 13% to $1.30 billion as global debt issuance showed signs of recovery.

The Indices division followed with a 17% surge in revenue to $519 million, benefiting from a record increase in assets under management (AUM) linked to S&P-branded ETFs and strong exchange-traded derivative volumes.

Despite the strong quarterly beat, S&P Global slightly revised its full-year 2026 revenue growth guidance to a range of 6.3% to 8.3%, down from the previous 6.6% to 8.6%, citing lower-than-expected tailwinds from foreign exchange.