GET DAILY SIGNALSThomson Reuters TRI Posts +10% Revenue Growth in Q3 2026 With AI Momentum Intact
Key Takeaways
- Thomson Reuters reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $1.83 billion, up 10% year over year but slightly below Wall Street's consensus estimate of about $1.87 billion.
- Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) rose 14% to $0.81, yet came in below the roughly $0.89 analysts had expected.
- Organic revenue growth reached 10%, with the company's "Big 3" segments (Legal Professionals, Corporates, and Tax, Audit & Accounting Professionals) growing 10% for a second consecutive quarter.
- Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) increased 10% to $651 million, while the related margin narrowed to 35.5%.
- Management raised its full-year 2026 outlook, now guiding to total revenue growth of about 9.5% and organic growth of 8.5% to 9%.
- Free cash flow fell to $408 million from $526 million a year earlier, weighed down by working capital changes and higher cash taxes.
Why These Results Matter
Thomson Reuters has placed itself at the center of professional content and the AI wave, serving legal, tax, audit, accounting, and media clients. Its "Big 3" segments now represent roughly 89% of total revenue, so their growth path serves as the clearest indicator of the company's core health. Investors are tracking the adoption of AI-enabled products such as CoCounsel and the effects of the Global Print divestiture that closed on October 1, 2026. This quarter provides a useful checkpoint on whether AI investments are driving measurable revenue growth and margin stability as the company shifts toward higher-value, recurring software businesses.
What the Numbers Showed
For the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, TRI posted total revenue of $1.83 billion, a 10% rise from the prior-year period. That reflected 8% growth in recurring revenue and 23% growth in transactions revenue. Organic revenue also advanced 10%. Adjusted EPS increased 14% to $0.81, while adjusted EBITDA rose 10% to $651 million and the margin eased 30 basis points to 35.5%. Free cash flow dropped to $408 million from $526 million a year earlier.
Results were mixed versus expectations. Organic growth topped the company's own prior guidance, yet both adjusted EPS ($0.81 versus roughly $0.89 consensus) and revenue ($1.83 billion versus roughly $1.87 billion) fell short of Wall Street forecasts. Management lifted its full-year 2026 outlook to total revenue growth of about 9.5% and organic growth of 8.5% to 9%, while pointing to fourth-quarter organic growth of approximately 8% and an adjusted EBITDA margin near 42%.
Market Reaction
Even with the raised outlook and ongoing AI progress, TRI shares declined after the release. The EPS and revenue shortfalls against consensus appeared to weigh on sentiment, along with the drop in free cash flow and temporary margin pressure from severance costs and higher AI-related infrastructure spending. The reaction highlights how elevated expectations for AI monetization have raised the performance bar, even when underlying growth stays solid and guidance improves.
Key Themes to Watch
Several themes stand out from the quarter. AI adoption remains central: GenAI-enabled annualized contract value reached 34% of total ACV, up from 30% last quarter and 24% a year earlier. Continued traction in CoCounsel Legal and the new CoCounsel Tax, Audit & Accounting platform will help sustain that pace. Margin trends also deserve attention after the company absorbed $22 million in severance costs and higher large-language-model expenses. Finally, the Global Print divestiture to KKR-advised accounts, completed October 1 for roughly $500 million in gross proceeds, moves the portfolio toward faster-growing, higher-margin software businesses. A dividend increase marking the 33rd consecutive year of growth adds a constructive note, though near-term transaction revenue should moderate as one-time e-invoicing work normalizes.
Using AI Tools in My Research
I also checked this using Tickeron's AI Screener to see how TRI compares with peers on growth and technical signals. From what I see, the tool helps surface comparable setups quickly when reviewing earnings across the information-services space.
Exploring AI-Powered Trading Approaches
When evaluating broader market positioning after earnings reports like this one, I find it useful to review how AI-driven strategies are allocating across sectors. One quick way to do that is by looking at Trending AI Robots to understand current sentiment and positioning signals.
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Contributor
Sergey Savastiouk, Ph.D. has a degree in Applied Mathematics from Moscow University and has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor, manager, and mathematician. His professional expertise is in applied mathematics, mathematical modeling, system and pattern analysis, and software and hardware system integration. He has served as the CEO of several hi-tech start-up companies and nonprofit organizations, which has given him proven capabilities in business strategy for high-tech start-up companies, market assessment, company formation, team building, product development, marketing, and sales. He has published numerous articles in journals and magazines on related fields. As a retail investor, he spent 15 years developing his proprietary trading and quantitative algorithms (now Tickeron’s A.I.), which brought him significant returns in trading the stock market. His current work and goal in founding Tickeron is to bring professional, sophisticated stock market analysis capabilities to retail investors via an easy-to-use interface.
TRI's MACD Histogram just turned positive
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) for TRI turned positive on October 07, 2026. Looking at past instances where TRI's MACD turned positive, the stock continued to rise in 28 of 39 cases over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 72%.
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
The Momentum Indicator moved above the 0 level on October 02, 2026. You may want to consider a long position or call options on TRI as a result. In 43 of 76 past instances where the momentum indicator moved above 0, the stock continued to climb. The odds of a continued upward trend are 57%.
TRI moved above its 50-day moving average on October 08, 2026 date and that indicates a change from a downward trend to an upward trend.
The 10-day moving average for TRI crossed bullishly above the 50-day moving average on October 15, 2026. This indicates that the trend has shifted higher and could be considered a buy signal. In 8 of 12 past instances when the 10-day crossed above the 50-day, the stock continued to move higher over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 67%.
Following a +5.06% 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where TRI advanced for three days, in 177 of 319 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 55%.
The Aroon Indicator entered an Uptrend today. In 104 of 237 cases where TRI Aroon's Indicator entered an Uptrend, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued Uptrend are 44%.
Bearish Trend Analysis
The RSI Indicator demonstrated that the stock has entered the overbought zone. This may point to a price pull-back soon.
The Stochastic Oscillator may be shifting from an upward trend to a downward trend. In 31 of 60 cases where TRI's Stochastic Oscillator exited the overbought zone, the price fell further within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 52%.
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where TRI declined for three days, the price rose further in 50 of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 55%.
TRI broke above its upper Bollinger Band on October 22, 2026. This could be a sign that the stock is set to drop as the stock moves back below the upper band and toward the middle band. You may want to consider selling the stock or exploring put options.
Fundamental Analysis (Ratings)
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is 39 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating steady price growth. TRI’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Seasonality Score of 50 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is fair valued in the industry. The Tickeron Seasonality score describes the variance of predictable price changes around the same period every calendar year. These changes can be tied to a specific month, quarter, holiday or vacation period, as well as a meteorological or growing season.
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is 59 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of 75 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is slightly overvalued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: P/B Ratio (4.761) is normal, around the industry mean (6.110). P/E Ratio (32.455) is within average values for comparable stocks, (32.833). Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (1.223) is also within normal values, averaging (1.946). Dividend Yield (0.021) settles around the average of (0.025) among similar stocks. P/S Ratio (5.711) is also within normal values, averaging (9.907).
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is 76 (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to worse than average earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is 89 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating that the returns do not compensate for the risks. TRI’s unstable profits reported over time resulted in significant Drawdowns within these last five years. A stable profit reduces stock drawdown and volatility. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 83, placing this stock worse than average.
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Fundamental Analysis Ratings
The average fundamental analysis ratings, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, are as follows
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Industry OfficeEquipmentSupplies
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