Company Reports

On Oct. 1, Bloomberg reported, citing an unnamed source, that the Federal Housing Finance Agency is moving toward a bi-merge requirement, under which government-conforming mortgages would need only two credit files, from the current three. TransUnion, Equifax, and Fair Isaac shares fell after hours.

Along with TransUnion and Experian, Equifax is one of the Big Three US credit bureaus. As the US credit bureau market is relatively mature, the company has been adding new capabilities and expanding its geographic footprint organically and through acquisitions. As an example of its bolt-on acquisition strategy, Equifax purchased e-commerce fraud prevention platform Kount for $640 million in 2021. Outside the US, Equifax has international operations in both developed and developing countries. The acquisition of Boa Vista in 2023 gave Equifax entry into the Brazil market.

We’ve updated our model and company report on Equifax.

On Sept. 3, 2026, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte sent a series of x.com posts criticizing the pricing of Fair Isaac and the credit bureaus. He also suggested eliminating the tri-merge requirement for conforming mortgages and encouraged more lenders to adopt VantageScore.

Equifax reported 9% organic revenue growth for the second quarter, with adjusted EBITDA up 11%. The firm, however, narrowed its full-year 2026 guidance, with the company's shares down 6% in intraday trading.

Along with TransUnion and Experian, Equifax is one of the Big Three US credit bureaus. As the US credit bureau market is relatively mature, the company has been adding new capabilities and expanding its geographic footprint organically and through acquisitions. As an example of its bolt-on acquisition strategy, Equifax purchased e-commerce fraud prevention platform Kount for $640 million in 2021. Outside the US, Equifax has international operations in both developed and developing countries. The acquisition of Boa Vista in 2023 gave Equifax entry into the Brazil market.

After reviewing Equifax's and TransUnion’s moat ratings, we are downgrading our ratings to narrow from wide.

We’ve calibrated our cost of capital and Morningstar Uncertainty Rating for Equifax.

Along with TransUnion and Experian, Equifax is one of the Big Three US credit bureaus. Given the fixed costs inherent in a data-intensive business, Equifax has been able to enjoy strong operating leverage from incremental revenue. As the US credit bureau market is relatively mature, the company has been adding new capabilities and expanding its geographic footprint organically and through acquisitions. As an example of its bolt-on acquisition strategy, Equifax purchased e-commerce fraud prevention platform Kount for $640 million in 2021. Outside the US, Equifax has international operations in both developed and developing countries. The acquisition of Boa Vista in 2023 gave Equifax entry into Brazil.

Equifax reported first-quarter revenue of $1.65 billion, up 13% organically and an acceleration from 9% in the fourth quarter. Adjusted EBITDA grew 13%. As higher mortgage rates impact volumes, Equifax left its full-year constant currency outlook unchanged. Shares were down 1% in April 21 trading.

Along with TransUnion and Experian, Equifax is one of the Big Three US credit bureaus. Given the fixed costs inherent in a data-intensive business, Equifax has been able to enjoy strong operating leverage from incremental revenue. As the US credit bureau market is relatively mature, the company has been adding new capabilities and expanding its geographic footprint organically and through acquisitions. As an example of its bolt-on acquisition strategy, Equifax purchased e-commerce fraud prevention platform Kount for $640 million in 2021. Outside the US, Equifax has international operations in both developed and developing countries. The acquisition of Boa Vista in 2023 gave Equifax entry into Brazil.

Equifax reported 9% revenue growth in the fourth quarter and an initial 2026 outlook of 9%-11% of organic growth and adjusted EPS of $8.30-$8.70. After shares sold off 12% Feb. 3 on artificial intelligence-related concerns across information services, shares were mixed on the release.

In intraday trading on Feb. 3, a broad group of information-services companies, such as rating agencies, data providers, index providers, credit bureaus, and others, are seeing share price declines of 5% or more.

On the evening of Jan. 5, 2026, Bill Pulte, who serves as the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, or FHFA, wrote on x.com that “I do not understand what the credit bureaus are doing with their pricing—they are inviting a lot of scrutiny that is only intensifying by the day.”

Equifax reported 7% revenue growth with workforce solutions revenue up 5% and US credit bureau revenue up 11%. In addition, the company is heavily focused on cross-selling VantageScore and Work Number records to credit bureau customers.

On Oct. 7, 2025, Equifax announced it would price VantageScore at $4.50 per mortgage score for two years and offer free VantageScore to Fair Isaac customers across financial services through 2026. The move is in response to Fair Isaac announcing a direct license model at $10 per score on Oct. 1.

On Oct. 1, 2025, Fair Isaac announced that it would change its pricing and distribution model for its mortgage scores. Fair Isaac will allow tri-merge resellers the option to directly calculate scores rather than via the credit bureaus.

Along with Experian and TransUnion, Equifax is one of the Big Three US credit bureaus. Given the fixed costs inherent in a data-intensive business, Equifax has been able to enjoy strong operating leverage from incremental revenue. As the US credit bureau market is relatively mature, the company has been adding new capabilities and expanding its geographic footprint organically and through acquisitions. As an example of its bolt-on acquisition strategy, Equifax purchased e-commerce fraud prevention platform Kount for $640 million in 2021. Outside the US, Equifax has international operations in both developed and developing countries. The acquisition of Boa Vista in 2023 gave Equifax entry into Brazil.

Equifax reported 8% organic revenue growth to $1.54 billion in its second quarter. Adjusted EBITDA grew 9% to $499 million. The company narrowed its organic revenue and adjusted earnings per share growth outlook for 2025.

On July 8, 2025, Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, or FHFA, in a post on the social platform X indicated that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can use VantageScore 4.0 while maintaining the tri-merge requirement.