FactSet Research Systems 10-Q 2024-05-31

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 10-Q

For the quarterly period ended May 31, 2024

OR

For the transition period from ______to ______

Commission File Number: 1-11869

FACTSET RESEARCH SYSTEMS INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (203) 810-1000

Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report: None

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes x No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," "smaller reporting company," and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer x Accelerated filer ☐ Non-accelerated filer ☐ Smaller reporting company ☐ Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes ☐ No x

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer's classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date:

The number of shares outstanding of the registrant’s common stock, $.01 par value, as of June 27, 2024 was 38,039,989.

FactSet Research Systems Inc.

Form 10-Q

For the Quarter Ended May 31, 2024

Index

For additional information about FactSet Research Systems Inc. and access to its Annual Reports to Stockholders and Securities and Exchange Commission filings, free of charge, please visit FactSet’s website (https://investor.factset.com). Any information on or linked from the website is not incorporated by reference into this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

FactSet Research Systems Inc. has made statements under the captions Part I, Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, Part II, Item 1A. Risk Factors, and in other sections of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three and nine months ended May 31, 2024, that are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify these statements by words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "intends," "projects," "indicates," "predicts," "potential," or "continue," and similar expressions.

These forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us, may include projections of our future financial performance and anticipated trends in our business. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about future events. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. There are many important factors that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results, level of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including the numerous factors discussed under Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2023, that should be specifically considered.

Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Moreover, neither we nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements. We do not intend, and are under no duty, to update any of these forward-looking statements after the date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q to reflect actual results, future events or circumstances, or revised expectations.

We intend that all forward-looking statements we make will be subject to safe harbor protection of the federal securities laws as found in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION

FactSet Research Systems Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME – Unaudited

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Consolidated Financial Statements.

FactSet Research Systems Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME – Unaudited

(1) Presented net of a tax benefit of $119 thousand and $704 thousand for the three months ended May 31, 2024 and May 31, 2023, respectively. Presented net of a tax benefit of $1,126 thousand and a tax expense of $781 thousand for the nine months ended May 31, 2024 and May 31, 2023, respectively.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Consolidated Financial Statements.

FactSet Research Systems Inc.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS – Unaudited

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Consolidated Financial Statements.

FactSet Research Systems Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS – Unaudited

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This Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations ("MD&A") should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and related Notes included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2023, our Current Reports on Form 8-K and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed below. Factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified below and those discussed in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2023.

Our MD&A is designed to provide a reader of our financial statements with a narrative from the perspective of our management on our financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and certain other factors that may affect our future results. Our MD&A is presented in the following sections:

• Executive Overview

• Annual Subscription Value ("ASV")

• Client and User Additions

• Employee Headcount

• Results of Operations

• Non-GAAP Financial Measures

• Liquidity and Capital Resources

• Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

• Foreign Currency Exposure

• Critical Accounting Estimates

• New Accounting Pronouncements

Executive Overview

FactSet Research Systems Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively, "we," "our," "us," the "Company" or "FactSet") is a global financial digital platform and enterprise solutions provider with open and flexible technologies that drive the investment community to see more, think bigger and do its best work.

Our platform delivers expansive data, sophisticated analytics, and flexible technology used by global financial professionals to power their critical investment workflows. As of May 31, 2024, we had more than 8,000 clients comprised of over 208,000 investment professionals, including institutional asset managers, bankers, wealth managers, asset owners, partners, hedge funds, corporate users, and private equity and venture capital professionals. Our revenues are primarily derived from subscriptions to our multi-asset class data and solutions powered by our connected content, referred to as our "content refinery." Our products and services include workstations, portfolio analytics and enterprise solutions.

We drive our business based on our detailed understanding of our clients' workflows, which helps us to solve their most complex challenges. We provide financial data and market intelligence on securities, companies, industries and people to enable our clients to research investment ideas, as well as to analyze, monitor and manage their portfolios. Our on- and off-platform solutions span the investment life cycle of investment research, portfolio construction and analysis, trade execution, performance measurement, risk management and reporting. We provide open and flexible technology offerings, including a configurable desktop and mobile platform, comprehensive data feeds, cloud-based digital solutions and application programming interfaces ("APIs"). The CUSIP Global Services ("CGS") business supports security master files relied on by the investment industry for critical front, middle and back-office functions. These platforms and solutions are supported by our dedicated client service team.

We operate our business through three reportable segments ("segments"): the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. During fiscal 2024, we revised our internal organization within each segment to offer data, products and analytical applications by firm type:

• "Institutional Buyside" focuses on asset managers, asset owners, and hedge fund companies,

• "Dealmakers" focuses on banking and sell-side research, corporate, and private equity and venture capital workflows,

• "Wealth" focuses on wealth management workflows, and

• "Partnerships and CGS": "Partnerships" delivers solutions to content providers, financial exchanges, and rating agencies. "CGS" is the exclusive issuer of Committee on Uniform Security Identification Procedures ("CUSIP") and CUSIP International Number System ("CINS") identifiers.

As our chief operating decision maker ("CODM") continues to review our business and operating results based on our three segments, the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific, the realignment of our internal organization by firm type will not impact our segments for fiscal 2024. Refer to Note 15, Segment Information, in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part I, Item 1. of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for more information on our segments and CODM.

Business Strategy

Our strategy is to build the leading open content and analytics platform and powerful enterprise solutions that deliver a differentiated advantage for our clients’ success. By offering personalized digital products, we strive to be a trusted partner and service provider, delivering relevant insights and research ideas tailored to our clients' specific business models.

We are focused on growing our global business through three strategically aligned geographic segments: the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. This approach allows us to better manage resources, target solutions and interact with clients effectively. To execute our strategy, we have outlined the following key initiatives:

• Expanding our Digital Platform**: We are scaling up our content refinery to provide a comprehensive inventory of industry, proprietary and third-party data. This includes granular data for key industry verticals, real-time data, fund data and sustainable finance. Through an open ecosystem of cloud-based data and analytics, we aim to offer flexible solutions and content accessible through various delivery methods. In addition, we are working to expand our use of artificial intelligence to drive efficiencies for our clients, with anticipated initiatives including automation of tasks and integration of natural language queries. We believe that our breadth of high-quality, connected content will be a critical raw material for large language models.

• Ensuring Execution Excellence**: Innovation and collaboration are at the core of our approach. We employ technology to accelerate content collection, data connectivity and the development of summaries and themes. Our sales force is committed to enhancing price realization, productivity, efficiency and improved client outcomes. We are also optimizing operations and managing expenses to improve returns on our investments.

• Fostering a Growth Mindset**: We prioritize recruiting, training and empowering a diverse and efficient workforce. We are driving sustainable growth by investing in talent that can create leading technological solutions and efficiently execute our strategy. Additionally, strategic partnerships and acquisitions help to accelerate our expansion in key areas.

Fiscal 2024 Third Quarter in Review

Revenues in the third quarter of fiscal 2024 were $552.7 million, an increase of 4.3% from the comparable prior year period. The growth in revenues was reflective of organic revenues growth of 4.5% for the third quarter of fiscal 2024 compared with the prior year period. Revenues increased in all our segments, primarily in the Americas and, to a lesser extent, EMEA and Asia Pacific. Revenues increased due to higher demand and price increases primarily from workstations, data solutions and middle office solutions. Refer to Part I, Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, Non-GAAP Financial Measures, of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for a definition of organic revenues and a reconciliation between revenues and organic revenues.

As of May 31, 2024, organic annual subscription value ("Organic ASV") plus Professional Services totaled $2,22

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In the normal course of business, we are exposed to foreign currency exchange risk and interest rate risk that could impact our financial position and results of operations. Current market events have not required us to materially modify our financial risk management strategies with respect to our exposures to foreign currency exchange risk or interest rate risk.

Foreign Currency Transaction Risk

As we operate globally, we are exposed to the risk that our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be impacted by changes in foreign currency exchange rates. As of May 31, 2024, we maintained a series of foreign currency forward contracts to hedge a portion of our primary currency exposures, namely the British Pound Sterling, Indian Rupee, Euro and Philippine Peso. We entered into these contracts with the intent to hedge between 25% to 75% of the currency exposure related to our projected operating income in these primary currencies over their respective hedge periods. The hedge maturity

periods range from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 through the third quarter of fiscal 2025. We utilize cash flow hedges to manage risk and not for speculative or trading purposes.

The changes in fair value for these foreign currency forward contracts are initially reported as a component of Accumulated other comprehensive loss ("AOCL") on the Consolidated Balance Sheets and subsequently reclassified into SG&A in the Consolidated Statements of Income when the hedged exposure affects earnings.

The following table reflects the foreign currency forward contracts gain (loss) reclassified from AOCL into income:

Foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, net of hedge activity, decreased operating income by $1.1 million and $1.5 million for the three and nine months ended May 31, 2024, respectively, when compared to the same respective periods a year ago.

We performed a sensitivity analysis as of May 31, 2024 to determine the effects on both the fair value of our outstanding foreign currency forward contracts and our operating income, excluding these forward contracts, of a hypothetical devaluation of the U.S. dollar by 10% as of May 31, 2024, relative to the other foreign currencies in which we transact. The sensitivity analysis indicated that a devaluation of the U.S. dollar by 10% would have increased the fair value of our outstanding forward contracts by approximately $18 million and our operating income, excluding these forward contracts, would have decreased by an estimated $32 million based on the results from our nine months ended May 31, 2024. This sensitivity analysis has inherent limitations as it disregards the possibility that rates of multiple foreign currencies will not always move in the same direction relative to the value of the U.S. dollar over time and does not account for our forward contracts that we utilize to mitigate fluctuations in exchange rates.

Refer to Note 5, Derivative Instruments in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part I, Item 1. of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, for more information on our foreign currency exposures and our foreign currency forward contracts.

Foreign Currency Translation Risk

We are exposed to foreign currency risk due to the translation of our results from certain international operations into U.S. Dollars as part of the consolidation process. Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates can create volatility in our results of operations and our financial condition.

The following table reflects the foreign currency translation adjustment gains and losses recorded in Other comprehensive income (loss):

Interest Rate Risk

Cash and Cash Equivalents and Investments

As of May 31, 2024, we had Cash and cash equivalents of $453.1 million and Investments of $68.9 million. Our Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash and highly liquid investments including demand deposits and money market funds and our Investments consist of mutual funds. We are exposed to interest rate risk through fluctuations of interest rates on these investments. As we have a restrictive investment policy, our financial exposure to fluctuations in interest rates is expected to remain low. Refer to Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part II, Item 8. of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for more information on our Cash and cash equivalents.

Debt

As of May 31, 2024, our outstanding variable interest rate debt included $187.5 million under the 2022 Term Facility and $250.0 million under the 2022 Revolving Facility. From the borrowing date through November 30, 2023, the outstanding borrowings under the 2022 Credit Facilities bore interest at a rate equal to the applicable one-month Term SOFR plus a 1.1% spread (comprised of a 1.0% interest rate margin based on a debt leverage pricing grid plus a 0.1% credit spread adjustment). From December 1, 2023 through May 31, 2024, the spread decreased to 0.975% (comprised of a 0.875% interest rate margin based on a debt leverage pricing grid plus a 0.1% credit spread adjustment).

To mitigate our exposure to interest rate volatility due to changes in SOFR, we entered into the 2022 Swap Agreement on March 1, 2022, to hedge a portion of our outstanding floating SOFR debt with a fixed interest rate of 1.162%. The 2022 Swap Agreement matured on February 28, 2024. To continue to hedge our outstanding floating SOFR debt, on March 1, 2024, we entered into the 2024 Swap Agreement with a notional amount of $200.0 million at a fixed interest rate of 5.145%. The notional amount of the 2024 Swap Agreement declines by $50.0 million on a quarterly basis beginning May 31, 2024 and matures on February 28, 2025. As of May 31, 2024, the notional amount of the 2024 Swap Agreement was $150.0 million.

Our Senior Notes have a fixed interest rate and are not subject to interest rate change. As such, our interest rate exposure is limited to the outstanding principal balance of our variable rate debt under our 2022 Credit Facilities in excess of our swap agreements. As of May 31, 2024, our interest rate exposure on our variable rate debt, net of our 2024 Swap Agreement, was $287.5 million. Assuming the principal balance of our outstanding variable rate debt, net of the 2024 Swap Agreement, remained at $287.5 million, a hypothetical 25 basis point change (up or down) in the one-month SOFR would result in an approximate $1 million change to our annual interest expense as of May 31, 2024.

Refer to Note 5, Derivative Instruments and Note 10, Debt and in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part I, Item 1. of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for more information on our swap agreements and outstanding borrowings as of May 31, 2024.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our management, including our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer, have evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures pursuant to Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), as of the end of the period covered by this report. Our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of the end of the period covered by this report.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) during the three and nine months ended May 31, 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

PART II – OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The information set forth under "Contingencies" in Note 11, Commitments and Contingencies, contained in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part I, Item 1., to this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q is incorporated by reference in answer to this Item.

There have been no material changes to the risk factors identified in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2023.

ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS

Items 2(a) and (b) are not applicable as there have been no unregistered sales of equity securities.

(i)Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The following table provides a month-to-month summary of our share repurchase activity during the three months ended May 31, 2024:

(1)Includes 135,150 shares purchased under the stock repurchase program, as well as 2,843 shares repurchased primarily to satisfy withholding tax obligations due upon the vesting of stock-based awards.

(2)As of May 31, 2024, $128.1 million remained authorized under our share repurchase program for future share repurchases. Repurchases may be made from time-to-time in the open market or via privately negotiated transactions, subject to market conditions. There is no defined number of shares to be repurchased over a specified timeframe through the life of our share repurchase program. It is expected that share repurchases will be paid using existing and future cash generated by operations. Refer to Part I, Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, Liquidity and Capital Resources, of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for further discussion on our share repurchase program.

Trading Arrangements

On August 11, 2023, we entered into an agreement to adopt a trading arrangement for the repurchase of shares of our common stock in the open market consistent with the provisions of Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The arrangement provides for the repurchase of up to $250 million of our common stock during the period from September 1, 2023 through August 31, 2024 pursuant to a written algorithm for determining the amount, price and date for purchase of shares of our common stock.

ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES

None.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

None of our directors or officers (as defined in Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended), adopted or terminated a Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement or a non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement (each as defined in Item 408(a) and (c) of Regulation S-K) during the quarter ended May 31, 2024.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.