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Equifax (EFX) Q2 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates

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Equifax Inc. (EFX - Free Report) reported impressive second-quarter 2024 results, wherein earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

EFX’s adjusted earnings (excluding 51 cents from non-recurring items) were $1.82 per share, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5.8% and increasing by 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Total revenues of $1.4 billion surpassed the consensus estimate by a slight margin and jumped 8.6% from the year-ago quarter.

Equifax, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise Equifax, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

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Segmental Information

Revenues in the Workforce Solutions segment totaled $612.9 million, increasing 5% from the year-ago quarter and beating our expectation of $600.2 million. Within the segment, Verification Services’ revenues of $515.9 million were up 9% year over year. Employer Services’ revenues of $97 million declined 11% on a year-over-year basis.

USIS segment’s revenues were $478.3 million, grew 7% from the year-ago quarter and missing our anticipation of $481.9 million. Within the segment, Online Information Solutions’ revenues of $377.8 million increased 5% year over year. Mortgage Solutions’ revenues of $40.4 million jumped 33% from the year-ago quarter. Financial Marketing Services’ revenues were $60.1 million, which increased 7% on a year-over-year basis.

Revenues in the International division amounted to $339.3 million, up 17% and 28% year over year on a reported basis and a local currency basis, respectively. The metric missed our estimate of $347.7 million.

Latin America’s revenues of $97.3 million surged 71% from the year-ago quarter on a reported basis and more than 100% on a local currency basis. Revenues from Europe amounted to $88.2 million, up 12% year over year on a reported and local currency basis. Canada’s revenues of $69.2 million increased 4% year over year on a reported basis and 6% on a local currency basis. Revenues from Asia Pacific were $84.6 million, declining 4% from the year-ago quarter on a reported basis and 2% on a local currency basis.

Operating Results

Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter of 2024 amounted to $457.7 million, reflecting a 6.1% increase from the year-ago quarter. The adjusted EBITDA margin was 32%, which declined 70 basis points from the year-ago quarter.

Workforce Solutions’ adjusted EBITDA margin was 52.8% compared with 51.5% a year ago. Adjusted EBITDA margin for the USIS division was 33.2% compared with 36% in the second quarter of 2023. The adjusted EBITDA margin for the international segment was 25.6% in comparison with 24.2% in the year-ago quarter.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow

EFX exited the second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $181.9 million, compared with $201 million at the end of the first quarter of 2024. The company has a long-term debt of $4.7 billion, flat with the preceding quarter.

Cash generated from operating activities amounted to $267.5 million, whereas capital expenditure totaled $136.7 million. The company distributed $48.2 million as dividends in the quarter.

Q3 and 2024 Outlook

For the third quarter of 2024, EFX raised its revenue guidance to $1.43-$1.45 billion compared with $1.41-$1.43 billion mentioned previously. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at $1.42 billion, which is lower than the guided range. It raised the guidance for adjusted earnings per share (EPS) to $1.75-$1.85 compared with $1.65-$1.75 previously, whereas the current consensus estimate for EPS is pegged at $1.72, which is lower than the guided range.

For 2024, Equifax raised revenue guidance to $5.69-$5.75 billion compared with $5.67-$5.77 billion previously. The mid-point ($5.72 billion) of the revised guided range is below the current Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.73 billion. The company reduced the adjusted EPS guidance to $7.22-$7.47 compared with $7.2-$7.5 previously. The mid-point ($7.35 per share) of the revised guided range is below the current Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.37 billion.

Currently, Equifax carries a Zacks Rank #4 (sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Ranked (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Earnings Snapshot of Some Business Services Stocks

Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK - Free Report) has reported impressive first-quarter 2024 results.

VRSK’s adjusted earnings (excluding 11 cents from non-recurring items) were $1.6 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.2% and increasing 26.4% from the year-ago quarter. Total revenues of $704 million surpassed the consensus estimate marginally and increased 8% year over year on a reported basis and 6.9% on an organic constant currency (OCC) basis.

S&P Global Inc. (SPGI - Free Report) has reported impressive first-quarter results.

SPGI’s adjusted EPS (excluding 85 cents from non-recurring items) of $4 surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 9% and increased 27.3% year over year. Revenues of $3.5 billion beat the consensus estimate by 2.9% and improved 10.5% year over year.


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