Fair Isaac Corporation’s (NYSE:FICO) Q1 CY2026: Strong Sales, Stock Soars

Credit scoring and analytics company FICO (NYSE:FICO) announced better-than-expected revenue in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 38.7% year on year to $691.7 million. On the other hand, the company’s full-year revenue guidance of $2.45 billion at the midpoint came in 1.1% below analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $12.50 per share was 13.9% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Company Overview

Creator of the three-digit number that can determine whether you get a mortgage or credit card, Fair Isaac Corporation (NYSE:FICO) develops analytics software and the widely used FICO Score, which is the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the United States.

Revenue Growth

A company’s long-term performance is an indicator of its overall quality. Even a bad business can shine for one or two quarters, but a top-tier one grows for years.

With $2.26 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Fair Isaac Corporation is a mid-sized business services company, which sometimes brings disadvantages compared to larger competitors benefiting from better economies of scale. On the bright side, it can still flex high growth rates because it’s working from a smaller revenue base.

As you can see below, Fair Isaac Corporation’s sales grew at an excellent 11.1% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. This is a great starting point for our analysis because it shows Fair Isaac Corporation’s demand was higher than many business services companies.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within business services, a half-decade historical view may miss recent innovations or disruptive industry trends. Fair Isaac Corporation’s annualized revenue growth of 18.6% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was strong and recently accelerated.

This quarter, Fair Isaac Corporation reported wonderful year-on-year revenue growth of 38.7%, and its $691.7 million of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 9.1%.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 19.6% over the next 12 months, similar to its two-year rate. This projection is eye-popping and suggests its newer products and services will fuel better top-line performance.

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Adjusted Operating Margin

Adjusted operating margin is one of the best measures of profitability because it tells us how much money a company takes home after subtracting all core expenses, like marketing and R&D. It also removes various one-time costs to paint a better picture of normalized profits.

Fair Isaac Corporation has been a well-oiled machine over the last five years. It demonstrated elite profitability for a business services business, boasting an average adjusted operating margin of 52.1%.

Analyzing the trend in its profitability, Fair Isaac Corporation’s adjusted operating margin rose by 12.9 percentage points over the last five years, as its sales growth gave it immense operating leverage.

In Q1, Fair Isaac Corporation generated an adjusted operating margin profit margin of 64.7%, up 7.1 percentage points year on year. This increase was a welcome development and shows it was more efficient.

Earnings Per Share

Revenue trends explain a company’s historical growth, but the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) points to the profitability of that growth – for example, a company could inflate its sales through excessive spending on advertising and promotions.

Fair Isaac Corporation’s EPS grew at 25.5% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 11.1% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.

Diving into Fair Isaac Corporation’s quality of earnings can give us a better understanding of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, Fair Isaac Corporation’s adjusted operating margin expanded by 12.9 percentage points over the last five years. On top of that, its share count shrank by 19.6%. These are positive signs for shareholders because improving profitability and share buybacks turbocharge EPS growth relative to revenue growth.

Like with revenue, we analyze EPS over a more recent period because it can provide insight into an emerging theme or development for the business.

For Fair Isaac Corporation, its two-year annual EPS growth of 29.3% was higher than its five-year trend. We love it when earnings growth accelerates, especially when it accelerates off an already high base.

In Q1, Fair Isaac Corporation reported adjusted EPS of $12.50, up from $7.81 in the same quarter last year. This print easily cleared analysts’ estimates, and shareholders should be content with the results. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects Fair Isaac Corporation’s full-year EPS of $36.14 to grow 30.4%.

Key Takeaways from Fair Isaac Corporation’s Q1 Results

We were impressed by how significantly Fair Isaac Corporation blew past analysts’ revenue expectations this quarter. We were also glad its EPS outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its full-year revenue guidance slightly missed. Overall, we think this was a solid quarter with some key areas of upside. The stock traded up 5.9% to $1,070 immediately following the results.

Fair Isaac Corporation put up rock-solid earnings, but one quarter doesn’t necessarily make the stock a buy. Let’s see if this is a good investment. If you’re making that decision, you should consider the bigger picture of valuation, business qualities, as well as the latest earnings. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).