Verisk Q4 Earnings Beat Expectations, Dividend Increased
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Feb 18 2026
0mins
Source: seekingalpha
- Earnings Beat: Verisk reported a Q4 non-GAAP EPS of $1.82, exceeding expectations by $0.21, with revenue of $779 million reflecting a 5.8% year-over-year growth, indicating strong market performance.
- EBITDA Growth: Adjusted EBITDA reached $437 million, up 9.8%, and 6.2% on an OCC basis, demonstrating ongoing improvements in operational efficiency and profitability.
- Strong Cash Flow: Net cash provided by operating activities was $343 million, up 34.4%, while free cash flow was $276 million, a 38.0% increase, providing a solid foundation for future investments and shareholder returns.
- Dividend and Buyback Plans: The Board approved an increase in the cash dividend from $0.45 to $0.50 per share, an 11% rise, and raised the share repurchase authorization to $2.5 billion, reflecting confidence in future growth.
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Analyst Views on VRSK
Wall Street analysts forecast VRSK stock price to rise
12 Analyst Rating
5 Buy
6 Hold
1 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 172.820
Low
220.00
Averages
252.89
High
300.00
Current: 172.820
Low
220.00
Averages
252.89
High
300.00
About VRSK
Verisk Analytics, Inc. is a data analytics and technology provider serving clients in the insurance ecosystem. The Company offers predictive analytics and decision support solutions to clients in rating, underwriting, claims, catastrophe, weather risk, and many other fields. Its Insurance segment serves its property and casualty insurance customers across personal and commercial lines of business, focusing on insurance programs, the prediction of loss, the selection and pricing of risk, and compliance with their reporting requirements in each the United States state in which they operate. It also develops and utilizes machine-learned and artificially intelligent models to forecast scenarios and produce both standard and customized analytics that help its customers better manage their businesses, including detecting fraud before and after a loss event. It provides data aggregation and reporting services for catastrophe and large loss claims across the industry.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Rising Repair Costs: The average repair cost for roofs was $4,699 in 2025, marking a 25% increase over the four-year average, which underscores the ongoing rise in material and labor costs, further straining insurers' financials.
- Aging Roof Risk Intensifies: Data shows that 38% of U.S. residential roofs are in moderate to poor condition, with the Midwest and Northeast regions having 17% and 18% of roofs aged 31 years or older, respectively, raising the stakes for underwriting and risk assessment in the insurance industry.
- Hail Risk Volatility: In 2025, severe hail impacted over 20% of roofs in 16 states, highlighting the frequency and unpredictability of weather events, necessitating enhanced risk management and response strategies from insurers in localized markets.
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- Digital Customer Experience: Zen Insurance offers a no-touch, fully digital customer experience, allowing consumers to easily manage their policies through online portals, live chat, and self-service, significantly improving customer satisfaction and market responsiveness.
- Technology-Driven Flexibility: With real-time connectivity through Applied Rating Hub, Zen Insurance accesses over 30 personal lines insurers and offers more than 100 products, reducing integration complexity and accelerating market launch speed, enhancing customer choice.
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- Simplified Data Access: The MCP connectors enable underwriters to quickly access loss cost trends and experience insights from ISO, integrating data from multiple tools to support more confident underwriting decisions while ensuring accountability remains with professionals.
- Support for Restoration Professionals: The XactRestore connector provides restoration professionals with natural language pricing and estimating intelligence, allowing for time savings of 30 minutes to two hours per estimate, thereby improving the efficiency and accuracy of the repair process.
- Responsible AI Implementation: Verisk's collaboration with Anthropic ensures that AI applications in the insurance sector adhere to strict governance and compliance standards, emphasizing the importance of authoritative data and explainable decision-making in a high-stakes industry.
See More
Bearish Thesis on Verisk Analytics Stock
- Market Outlook Deterioration: Verisk Analytics (VRSK) is currently trading at $188.19, with expectations of a 4.4% organic miss in Q4, potentially leading to downward revisions for 2026 earnings, reflecting market concerns about its future performance.
- Increased Competitive Pressure: VRSK faces cyclical pressures in personal auto and property markets, particularly due to adverse weather conditions and weak insurance demand, with a sharp decline in transaction revenue offsetting subscription resilience, indicating vulnerability in its market position.
- Diminished Pricing Power: Management acknowledges that future premium increases must be justified by product value, signaling a weakening pricing power in the property and casualty cycle, which could adversely affect profitability.
- AI Disruption Risk: With the rapid advancement of AI technology, VRSK's growth relies on pricing and upselling rather than durable data moats, as increasing competition and client internalization of analytics further compress growth visibility.
See More
JP Morgan Increases Target Price for Verisk Analytics Inc. to $230 from $220
- JP Morgan's Target Price Increase: JP Morgan has raised its target price for a specific stock from $220 to $230.
- Market Implications: This adjustment reflects JP Morgan's positive outlook on the stock's performance and potential growth in the market.
See More
Verisk Analytics Q1 2026 Earnings Call Insights
- Revenue Growth: Verisk achieved a 7% growth in subscription revenues and a 4.7% organic constant currency revenue growth in Q1 2026, demonstrating the company's ability to maintain stable revenue growth despite short-term challenges, thereby enhancing market confidence.
- Profitability Improvement: Adjusted EBITDA grew by 5.9%, with a 60 basis point margin expansion, reflecting the company's success in cost control and efficiency improvements, further solidifying its competitive position in the industry.
- Clear Strategic Focus: CEO Shavel emphasized four key strategic initiatives, including strengthening client relationships, expanding data advantages, continuous innovation, and business network expansion, which will drive compounded growth and enhance long-term profitability.
- Outlook Reaffirmed: CFO Mann reaffirmed full-year revenue guidance of $3.19 billion to $3.24 billion, expecting Q1 to be the trough for organic revenue growth, with gradual improvement anticipated as short-term factors are resolved.
See More
Rising Roof Losses Persist Despite Declining Claims Volume in the U.S.
- Surge in Replacement Costs: In 2025, the average cost for residential roof replacements in the U.S. reached $17,631, reflecting a 33% increase over the four-year average from 2021 to 2024, indicating that roof risk continues to rise even with a decline in claims volume, impacting loss forecasting and pricing strategies in the insurance sector.
- Rising Repair Costs: The average repair cost for roofs was $4,699 in 2025, marking a 25% increase over the four-year average, which underscores the ongoing rise in material and labor costs, further straining insurers' financials.
- Aging Roof Risk Intensifies: Data shows that 38% of U.S. residential roofs are in moderate to poor condition, with the Midwest and Northeast regions having 17% and 18% of roofs aged 31 years or older, respectively, raising the stakes for underwriting and risk assessment in the insurance industry.
- Hail Risk Volatility: In 2025, severe hail impacted over 20% of roofs in 16 states, highlighting the frequency and unpredictability of weather events, necessitating enhanced risk management and response strategies from insurers in localized markets.
See More
Zen Insurance Launches Digital-First Insurance Solution in the UK
- Market Entry Timing: Zen Insurance launches in the UK, leveraging Verisk Ignite's end-to-end policy management platform to enhance operational efficiency and customer engagement, thereby standing out in the competitive digital insurance landscape.
- Digital Customer Experience: Zen Insurance offers a no-touch, fully digital customer experience, allowing consumers to easily manage their policies through online portals, live chat, and self-service, significantly improving customer satisfaction and market responsiveness.
- Technology-Driven Flexibility: With real-time connectivity through Applied Rating Hub, Zen Insurance accesses over 30 personal lines insurers and offers more than 100 products, reducing integration complexity and accelerating market launch speed, enhancing customer choice.
- Full Lifecycle Automation: Verisk Ignite supports automation across the entire insurance lifecycle, from quoting to renewals, reducing operational complexity typically associated with launching new insurance brands, enabling Zen Insurance to quickly adapt to market changes and meet customer needs.
See More
Verisk Launches MCP Connectors to Enhance Insurance Analytics Efficiency
- AI-Enabled Insurance Workflows: Verisk's newly launched MCP connectors allow insurance professionals to interact with regulatory-grade data through Claude in natural language, significantly enhancing efficiency and reducing manual tasks, with an estimated savings of hundreds of hours per carrier annually.
- Simplified Data Access: The MCP connectors enable underwriters to quickly access loss cost trends and experience insights from ISO, integrating data from multiple tools to support more confident underwriting decisions while ensuring accountability remains with professionals.
- Support for Restoration Professionals: The XactRestore connector provides restoration professionals with natural language pricing and estimating intelligence, allowing for time savings of 30 minutes to two hours per estimate, thereby improving the efficiency and accuracy of the repair process.
- Responsible AI Implementation: Verisk's collaboration with Anthropic ensures that AI applications in the insurance sector adhere to strict governance and compliance standards, emphasizing the importance of authoritative data and explainable decision-making in a high-stakes industry.
See More
Bearish Thesis on Verisk Analytics Stock
- Market Outlook Deterioration: Verisk Analytics (VRSK) is currently trading at $188.19, with expectations of a 4.4% organic miss in Q4, potentially leading to downward revisions for 2026 earnings, reflecting market concerns about its future performance.
- Increased Competitive Pressure: VRSK faces cyclical pressures in personal auto and property markets, particularly due to adverse weather conditions and weak insurance demand, with a sharp decline in transaction revenue offsetting subscription resilience, indicating vulnerability in its market position.
- Diminished Pricing Power: Management acknowledges that future premium increases must be justified by product value, signaling a weakening pricing power in the property and casualty cycle, which could adversely affect profitability.
- AI Disruption Risk: With the rapid advancement of AI technology, VRSK's growth relies on pricing and upselling rather than durable data moats, as increasing competition and client internalization of analytics further compress growth visibility.
See More
JP Morgan Increases Target Price for Verisk Analytics Inc. to $230 from $220
- JP Morgan's Target Price Increase: JP Morgan has raised its target price for a specific stock from $220 to $230.
- Market Implications: This adjustment reflects JP Morgan's positive outlook on the stock's performance and potential growth in the market.
See More
Verisk Analytics Q1 2026 Earnings Call Insights
- Revenue Growth: Verisk achieved a 7% growth in subscription revenues and a 4.7% organic constant currency revenue growth in Q1 2026, demonstrating the company's ability to maintain stable revenue growth despite short-term challenges, thereby enhancing market confidence.
- Profitability Improvement: Adjusted EBITDA grew by 5.9%, with a 60 basis point margin expansion, reflecting the company's success in cost control and efficiency improvements, further solidifying its competitive position in the industry.
- Clear Strategic Focus: CEO Shavel emphasized four key strategic initiatives, including strengthening client relationships, expanding data advantages, continuous innovation, and business network expansion, which will drive compounded growth and enhance long-term profitability.
- Outlook Reaffirmed: CFO Mann reaffirmed full-year revenue guidance of $3.19 billion to $3.24 billion, expecting Q1 to be the trough for organic revenue growth, with gradual improvement anticipated as short-term factors are resolved.
See More
