Donnelley Financial Solutions (1DN) Q3 2026 Earnings Report
DE:1DN Q3 2026 EPS Results
- Actual EPS
- EUR 0.96
- Consensus EPS
- EUR 0.75
- Beat/Miss
- Beat by +EUR 0.20
- One Year Ago EPS
- EUR 0.77
DE:1DN Q3 2026 Revenue Results
- Actual Revenue
- EUR 165.41M
- Expected Revenue
- EUR 160.85M
- Beat/Miss
- Beat by +EUR 4.56M
- YoY Revenue Growth
- +5.53%
Earnings Announcement Details
- Quarter
- Q3 2026
- Date
- 10/29/2026
- Time
- Before Open
- Conference Call
- Thursday, October 29, 2026
Donnelley Financial Solutions's next earnings date is estimated for February 23, 2027, based on past reporting schedules.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Audio
Q3 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Summary
The call was predominantly positive, with strong third-quarter sales, adjusted EBITDA, margin, free cash flow and leverage metrics; sustained growth in Software Solutions and ActiveDisclosure; improving capital markets activity; and continued progress toward a software-led business model. The main challenges were weaker Venue performance internationally, declines in Arc Suite and print-related revenue, softer U.S. IPO activity, higher incentive compensation expense and fourth-quarter margin guidance that is expected to be flat year over year.
For the fourth quarter of 2026, DFIN expects consolidated net sales in the range of $175 million to $180 million, with the midpoint implying year-over-year growth of approximately 3%, in line with the year-to-date growth rate through the first 3 quarters; adjusted EBITDA margin is expected in the range of 26% to 27%, with the midpoint of 26.5% flat to last year’s fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA margin, which included a reimbursement of approximately $3 million related to a stop-loss insurance policy. Capital Markets transactional net sales are estimated at $50 million, including a small portion reflected within the Capital Markets Software Solutions segment, up approximately $1 million from last year’s fourth quarter, with a little bit more strength than the third quarter on IPO and pretty similar from an M&A perspective. The e-delivery regulation is expected to have a phase-in, with the impact more towards 2028, benefiting software and offsetting in part, not fully, the reduction in Print and distribution; ArcFlex is expected to generate a de minimis amount of revenue this year and start to ramp up in 2027.
- Third-Quarter Sales Growth at High End of GuidanceThird-quarter sales were $185 million, at the high end of the guidance range and up 5.5% compared with the third quarter of 2025.
- Adjusted EBITDA and Margin ExpansionThird-quarter adjusted EBITDA was $54.4 million, an increase of $4.9 million or nearly 10% year over year. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 29.4%, approximately 120 basis points higher than the third quarter of 2025.
- Strongest Trailing Four-Quarter Performance in Company HistoryOn a trailing four-quarter basis, sales increased 4.8%, adjusted EBITDA was $253.1 million, adjusted EBITDA margin was 32.2%, and free cash flow was nearly $180 million, representing DFIN's strongest trailing four-quarter performance in its history.
- Software Solutions Continued to Drive GrowthTrailing four-quarter Software Solutions sales increased 8% and accounted for approximately $377 million, or 47.9% of trailing four-quarter sales, up approximately 140 basis points from the comparable period. Excluding Print and distribution, sales grew 5.9%.
- Software-Led Revenue Mix ProgressSoftware Solutions represented 51.5% of total sales in the third quarter. Since 2016, Software Solutions net sales, excluding the impact of divestitures, have more than tripled, increasing from approximately 14% of revenue to nearly 50% today, while Print and distribution declined from approximately 40% to approximately 14%.
- ActiveDisclosure Delivered Sustained High GrowthActiveDisclosure sales grew approximately 24% year over year, marking the fifth consecutive quarter of 20% plus growth. ActiveDisclosure exceeded $100 million in trailing four-quarter revenue, and each of DFIN's three Software Solutions offerings now generates more than $100 million in annual revenue.
- ActiveDisclosure Client and IPO Adoption GrowthThe company reported continued growth in ActiveDisclosure's net client count and higher average value per client. Higher ActiveDisclosure usage in S-1 creation and filing for certain IPO transactions accounted for slightly more than half of total third-quarter ActiveDisclosure growth, while private-company use cases also contributed to net client count growth.
- Capital Markets Software Solutions GrowthCapital Markets Software Solutions revenue was $64.1 million, up $5.1 million or 8.6% year over year, driven by ActiveDisclosure, which increased $5.4 million.
- Capital Markets Transactional Revenue RecoveryCapital Markets transactional revenue was $45.7 million, up $3.9 million year over year and representing the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth. The company said the recovery in capital markets deal activity continued, large M&A activity remained strong, and DFIN maintained its historical market share for transactions completed in the quarter.
- Capital Markets Compliance and Communications GrowthRevenue in the Capital Markets, Compliance and Communications Management segment increased 8.2% to $61.9 million, driven by higher transactional revenue and increased compliance volume. Segment adjusted EBITDA margin increased approximately 640 basis points to 40.7%, primarily due to higher transactional sales, lower bad debt expense and cost control initiatives.
- Improved Gross MarginThird-quarter adjusted non-GAAP gross margin was 64.8%, approximately 210 basis points higher than the third quarter of 2025, primarily driven by growth in Software Solutions and capital markets transactional sales, cost control initiatives and price uplifts.
- Record Free Cash Flow and Improved Cash GenerationThird-quarter free cash flow was $85.8 million, $26.6 million higher than the third quarter of 2025. The improvement was primarily driven by favorable working capital, higher adjusted EBITDA and lower capital expenditures, with approximately half of the year-over-year improvement reflecting the overlap of last year's pension plan settlement payment.
- Low Leverage and Share RepurchasesDFIN ended the quarter with $127 million of total debt, $99.8 million of non-GAAP net debt and a non-GAAP net leverage ratio of 0.4x. The company repurchased approximately 147,000 shares for $6.9 million during the quarter and approximately 1.5 million shares for $69.9 million year to date, with $118.5 million remaining under its $150 million authorization.
- Venue Growth in the United StatesVenue delivered approximately 7% sales growth in the United States, supported by commercial adoption of new Venue and increased focus on key investment banks within the deal ecosystem. Management said it remains encouraged by the market reception of new Venue and its path forward.
- Investment in Future Growth and Platform ExpansionManagement plans to continue investing in new avenues of future growth, accelerate the shift of traditional services to SaaS and expand capabilities across its Software Solutions portfolio. ArcFlex, built on the DFIN compliance software platform and positioned as a module within ActiveDisclosure, is expected to begin ramping up in 2027.
- Potential E-Delivery Software OpportunityManagement said the expected trend toward e-delivery should benefit Software Solutions and offset in part, but not fully, the reduction in Print and distribution. The company expects the impact to be more toward 2028 and is awaiting final regulation and its phase-in schedule.
- Fourth-Quarter Revenue GuidanceFourth-quarter 2026 consolidated net sales are expected to be $175 million to $180 million. At the midpoint, this implies year-over-year growth of approximately 3%, in line with the year-to-date growth rate through the first three quarters.
DE:1DN Earnings History
| Report Date | Fiscal Quarter | Forecast / EPS | Last Year's EPS | EPS YoY Change | Press Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 23, 2027 | 2026 (Q4) | 0.74- | 0.63 | ― | ― |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 2026 (Q3) | 0.750.96 | 0.77 | 24.42% (+0.19) | |
| Jul 30, 2026 | 2026 (Q2) | 1.461.57 | 1.33 | 18.12% (+0.24) | |
| May 05, 2026 | 2026 (Q1) | 1.201.30 | 1.11 | 16.94% (+0.19) | |
| Feb 17, 2026 | 2025 (Q4) | 0.370.63 | 0.36 | 75.00% (+0.27) | |
| Oct 29, 2025 | 2025 (Q3) | 0.510.77 | 0.43 | 79.17% (+0.34) | |
| Jul 31, 2025 | 2025 (Q2) | 1.271.33 | 1.48 | -10.24% (-0.15) | |
| Apr 30, 2025 | 2025 (Q1) | 0.621.11 | 0.81 | 36.26% (+0.30) | |
| Feb 18, 2025 | 2024 (Q4) | 0.430.36 | 0.55 | -34.43% (-0.19) | |
| Oct 31, 2024 | 2024 (Q3) | 0.680.43 | 0.64 | -33.33% (-0.21) |
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.
