S&P Global Inc.

First quarter reported revenue grew 10% year over year, or 9% organic constant currency, and adjusted diluted EPS grew 14%. Consolidated adjusted expenses increased 8%, adjusted operating profit rose 12%, and adjusted margin expanded 100 basis points to 51.8%. By division, Market Intelligence revenue grew 8% (6% organic constant currency) and margin expanded 80 bps to 33.6%; Ratings revenue grew 13% and margin expanded 160 bps to 67.8%; Energy revenue grew 7% and margin expanded 120 bps to 49.3%; Indices revenue grew 17% and margin expanded 90 bps to 73.8%; Mobility revenue grew 8% and margin expanded 150 bps to 40%. Full-year consolidated guidance was reiterated for 6% to 8% organic constant currency revenue growth and 50 to 75 bps of margin expansion excluding OSTTRA, while adjusted EPS guidance was unchanged. Energy full-year organic constant currency revenue guidance was reduced to 4.5% to 6%, down 1 percentage point, due to the Iran conflict and related disruption. Management also said it expects to return at least 100% of adjusted free cash flow via repurchases, or roughly $4.5 billion for the year, and that leverage would rise to about 2.4x at year-end before Mobility spin-related debt proceeds.

Martina Cheung framed the quarter as evidence that S&P Global is executing well despite a more difficult macro and geopolitical backdrop. She emphasized progress on the company’s three strategic pillars: market leadership, expansion into high-growth adjacencies, and AI-enabled enterprise capabilities. Her tone was confident and constructive, but she repeatedly noted that volatility, private credit scrutiny, and the Iran conflict are creating meaningful uncertainty for customers and markets.

Eric Aboaf highlighted strong top-line growth, disciplined spending, and better-than-expected margins. He pointed to 10% reported revenue growth, 9% organic constant currency growth, 14% EPS growth, and 51.8% consolidated margin, plus 160 bps of margin expansion excluding OSTTRA. He also reiterated 6% to 8% organic constant currency revenue growth for the year, 50 to 75 bps of margin expansion excluding OSTTRA, and an unchanged EPS outlook, while noting the company expects about $2 billion of debt to be issued at Mobility and plans to raise repurchases to at least $4.5 billion.

Analysts focused heavily on AI distribution and monetization, asking whether S&P will build MCP applications, how it will price data across own platforms versus third-party LLMs, and whether AI is already driving efficiency. Management said it intends to build MCP applications thoughtfully, monetize through enterprise value rather than seat-based or pure usage pricing, and that some clients are already paying 35% to 45% more at renewal for AI-ready access. Questions also centered on Ratings mix, private credit, and Energy weakness; management said Q1 ratings strength was helped by pulled-forward hyperscaler issuance, private credit grew 25% but remains an area of cautious optimism, and Energy remains directly pressured by the Iran conflict with near-term demand and pipeline softness.