MSCI Surpasses $1 Billion in Revenue Growth as AI-Powered Momentum Continues to Accelerate
Global investing powerhouse MSCI reported a stellar first quarter of 2026, exceeding expectations with robust financial performance and significant growth across its diversified business.
The company's Q1 results, announced earlier this morning, demonstrated the profound impact of agentic AI on its operations, as Jeremy Ulan, Head of Investor Relations and Treasurer, highlighted during the earnings conference call. MSCI's organic revenue growth soared to over 13%, with adjusted EPS growing nearly 14% and adjusted EBITDA expanding almost 19%. These impressive metrics underscored the company's commitment to maximizing value creation through disciplined capital deployment.
Henry Fernandez, Chairman and CEO of MSCI, expressed confidence in the company's long-term prospects, stating that Q1 results "affirm our foundational mission-critical role in global investing." He attributed this success to a highly diversified business model, which has enabled the company to thrive across various regions, product lines, client segments, and asset classes.
One notable highlight from the quarter was MSCI's record-breaking asset-based fee run rate of $872 million, representing 25% growth. The recurring subscription run rate also grew significantly at 9%, driven by net new recurring subscription sales totaling $39.6 million – a 52% increase. This impressive performance marked the best first quarter for net new recurring subscription sales since 2022, with the retention rate across all MSCI product lines remaining an impressive 95.4%. As Henry Fernandez noted during the conference call, "Our increased business momentum is starting to reflect the relentless adoption of agentic AI in everything we do."
The Asia Pacific region was a standout performer in Q1, with MSCI posting its strongest-ever Q1 for recurring sales at $15 million – a 46% increase from the same period last year. The company's Index business also saw significant growth, with subscription run rate growth returning to double digits at 10.7%. A record level of Q1 recurring sales was achieved in this segment at nearly $33 million.
The ecosystem around MSCI indices continues to scale to new heights, with more than $21 trillion in Assets Under Management (AUM) benchmarked to these indices. This includes $7.4 trillion of indexed equity AUM, comprised of $2.4 trillion in ETF products and $4.9 trillion in non-ETF products.
In addition, Q1 was the company's best quarter since 2023 for traded volumes and run rate from listed futures and options contracts linked to MSCI indices. This milestone reinforces the power of MSCI's ecosystem and shared success with its exchange partners, including a new licensing agreement for options on MSCI indices listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
The company's strong performance was also reflected in its capital return initiatives, with over $464 million of MSCI shares repurchased at an average price of about $556 per share between January 1st and yesterday. Furthermore, three small bolt-on acquisitions were completed in key growth areas, underscoring the company's commitment to strategic growth.
