MSCI Inc.

10/31/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/31/2024 13:32

Quarterly Report for Quarter Ending September 30, 2024 (Form 10-Q)

msci-20240930
Table of Contents
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
___________________________________
FORM 10-Q
___________________________________
x QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2024
OR
o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from____________to____________
Commission file number 001-33812
________________________________________

MSCI INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
________________________________________
Delaware 13-4038723
(State or other jurisdiction of
Incorporation or Organization)
(I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number)
7 World Trade Center
250 Greenwich Street, 49thFloor
New York, New York
10007
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (212) 804-3900
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Common stock, par value $0.01 per share MSCI New York Stock Exchange
________________________________________
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. YesxNo o
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 such files). YesxNo o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a 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 o
Non-accelerated filer o Smaller reporting company o
Emerging growth company o
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. o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes No x
As of October 24, 2024, there were 78,371,294 shares of the registrant's common stock, par value $0.01, outstanding.
Table of Contents
FOR THE QUARTER ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2024
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Part I - Financial Information
Item 1.
Financial Statements
4
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition as of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023
4
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023
5
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023
6
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity (Deficit) for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023
7
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023
9
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
10
1. Introduction and Basis of Presentation
10
2. Recent Accounting Pronouncements
11
3. Revenue Recognition
11
4. Earnings Per Common Share
12
5. Acquisitions
13
6. Property, Equipment and Leasehold Improvements, Net
16
7. Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Net
16
8. Debt
17
9. Leases
19
10. Shareholders' Equity (Deficit)
20
11. Income Taxes
21
12. Segment Information
22
13. Subsequent Events
25
Item 2.
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
26
Item 3.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
47
Item 4.
Controls and Procedures
48
Part II - Other Information
Item 1.
Legal Proceedings
49
Item 1A.
Risk Factors
49
Item 2.
Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
49
Item 5.
Other Information
49
Item 6.
Exhibits
50
2
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AVAILABLE INFORMATION
Our corporate headquarters is located at 7 World Trade Center, 250 Greenwich Street, 49th Floor, New York, New York, 10007, and our telephone number is (212) 804-3900. We maintain a website on the internet at www.msci.com. The contents of our website are not a part of or incorporated by reference in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
We file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information that we file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov. We also make available free of charge, on or through our website, these reports, proxy statements and other information as soon as reasonably practicable following the time they are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. To access these, click on the "SEC Filings" link under the "Financial Information" tab found on our Investor Relations homepage (http://ir.msci.com).
We also use our Investor Relations homepage and our Corporate Responsibility homepage as channels of distribution of Company information. The information we post through these channels may be deemed material.
Accordingly, investors should monitor these channels, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings and public conference calls and webcasts. In addition, you may automatically receive email alerts and other information about us when you enroll your email address by visiting the "Email Alerts" section of our Investor Relations homepage at https://ir.msci.com/email-alerts. The contents of our website, including our Investor Relations homepage and Corporate Responsibility homepage, and our social media channels are not, however, a part of or incorporated by reference in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
We have included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and from time to time may make in our public filings, press releases or other public statements, certain statements that constitute forward-looking statements. In addition, our management may make forward-looking statements to analysts, investors, representatives of the media and others. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and represent only MSCI's beliefs regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these statements.
In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "may," "could," "expect," "intend," "plan," "seek," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential" or "continue," or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Statements concerning our financial position, business strategy and plans or objectives for future operations are forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are, in some cases, beyond our control and that could materially affect our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Such risks and uncertainties include those set forth under "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of the 2023 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on February 9, 2024. If any of these risks, uncertainties or other factors materialize, or if MSCI's underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from what MSCI projected. Any forward-looking statement reflects our current views with respect to future events, levels of activity, performance or achievements and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to our operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. The forward-looking statements in this report speak only as of the time they are made and do not necessarily reflect our outlook at any other point in time. MSCI assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law. Therefore, readers should carefully review the risk factors set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and in other reports or documents we file from time to time with the SEC.
3
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PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements
MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION
(in thousands, except per share and share data)
As of
September 30, December 31,
(unaudited) 2024 2023
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents (includes restricted cash of $3,909 and $3,878 at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)
$ 500,979 $ 461,693
Accounts receivable (net of allowances of $4,363 and $3,968 at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)
643,807 839,555
Prepaid income taxes 77,493 59,002
Prepaid and other assets 63,517 57,903
Total current assets 1,285,796 1,418,153
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements, net 62,317 55,920
Right of use assets 121,726 115,243
Goodwill 2,916,102 2,887,692
Intangible assets, net 931,428 956,234
Deferred tax assets 41,761 41,074
Other non-current assets 49,819 43,903
Total assets $ 5,408,949 $ 5,518,219
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT)
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable $ 8,748 $ 9,812
Income taxes payable 38,744 24,709
Accrued compensation and related benefits 179,041 219,456
Current portion of long-term debt - 10,902
Other accrued liabilities 208,542 168,282
Deferred revenue 942,840 1,083,864
Total current liabilities 1,377,915 1,517,025
Long-term debt 4,484,773 4,496,826
Long-term operating lease liabilities 123,939 120,134
Deferred tax liabilities 61,281 27,028
Other non-current liabilities 112,039 96,970
Total liabilities 6,159,947 6,257,983
Commitments and Contingencies (see Note 8)
Shareholders' equity (deficit):
Preferred stock (par value $0.01; 100,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued)
- -
Common stock (par value $0.01; 750,000,000 common shares authorized; 134,079,131
and 133,817,332 common shares issued and 78,371,202 and 79,091,212 common shares outstanding at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)
1,341 1,338
Treasury shares, at cost (55,707,929 and 54,726,120 common shares held at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)
(6,960,512) (6,447,101)
Additional paid in capital 1,660,793 1,587,670
Retained earnings 4,600,360 4,179,681
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (52,980) (61,352)
Total shareholders' equity (deficit) (750,998) (739,764)
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity (deficit) $ 5,408,949 $ 5,518,219
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(in thousands, except per share data)
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(unaudited) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues $ 724,705 $ 625,439 $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814
Operating expenses:
Cost of revenues (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) 126,192 105,311 382,815 324,024
Selling and marketing 70,763 66,581 214,385 201,044
Research and development 38,584 31,438 120,182 92,901
General and administrative 41,561 36,826 137,958 113,527
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 121,316 77,543
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and
leasehold improvements
4,332 5,252 12,639 15,911
Total operating expenses 323,371 272,130 989,295 824,950
Operating income 401,334 353,309 1,123,324 1,013,864
Interest income (5,217) (10,314) (17,375) (31,079)
Interest expense 46,688 46,902 139,995 139,725
Other expense (income) 2,927 (935) 7,881 4,032
Other expense (income), net 44,398 35,653 130,501 112,678
Income before provision for income taxes 356,936 317,656 992,823 901,186
Provision for income taxes 76,035 57,997 189,210 155,974
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 $ 803,613 $ 745,212
Earnings per share:
Basic $ 3.58 $ 3.28 $ 10.18 $ 9.36
Diluted $ 3.57 $ 3.27 $ 10.15 $ 9.32
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic 78,499 79,116 78,925 79,580
Diluted 78,729 79,500 79,159 79,959
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
(in thousands)
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(unaudited) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 $ 803,613 $ 745,212
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Foreign currency translation adjustments 12,899 (5,832) 9,102 1,046
Income tax effect (1,039) 771 (827) (660)
Foreign currency translation adjustments, net 11,860 (5,061) 8,275 386
Pension and other post-retirement adjustments (28) 756 78 (1,338)
Income tax effect 23 (72) 19 141
Pension and other post-retirement adjustments, net (5) 684 97 (1,197)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax
11,855 (4,377) 8,372 (811)
Comprehensive income $ 292,756 $ 255,282 $ 811,985 $ 744,401
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT)
(in thousands)
(unaudited) Common
Stock
Treasury
Stock
Additional
Paid in
Capital
Retained
Earnings
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
Total
Balance at December 31, 2023
$ 1,338 $ (6,447,101) $ 1,587,670 $ 4,179,681 $ (61,352) $ (739,764)
Net income 255,954 255,954
Dividends declared ($1.60 per common share)
(129,444) (129,444)
Dividends paid in shares 74 74
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax (2,205) (2,205)
Common stock issued 3 3
Shares withheld for tax withholding (69,991) (69,991)
Compensation payable in common stock 34,894 34,894
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury -
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
(38) (38)
Balance at March 31, 2024
1,341 (6,517,130) 1,622,638 4,306,191 (63,557) (650,517)
Net income 266,758 266,758
Dividends declared ($1.60 per common share)
(127,304) (127,304)
Dividends paid in shares 40 40
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax (1,278) (1,278)
Common stock issued -
Shares withheld for tax withholding (200) (200)
Compensation payable in common stock 19,707 19,707
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury (243,035) (243,035)
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
1,346 1,346
Balance at June 30, 2024
$ 1,341 $ (6,759,019) $ 1,642,385 $ 4,445,645 $ (64,835) $ (734,483)
Net income 280,901 280,901
Dividends declared ($1.60 per common share)
(126,186) (126,186)
Dividends paid in shares 8 8
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 11,855 11,855
Common stock issued - -
Shares withheld for tax withholding and exercises (761) (761)
Compensation payable in common stock - 18,400 18,400
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury (200,724) (200,724)
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
(8) (8)
Balance at September 30, 2024
$ 1,341 $ (6,960,512) $ 1,660,793 $ 4,600,360 $ (52,980) $ (750,998)
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT)
(in thousands)
(unaudited) Common
Stock
Treasury
Stock
Additional
Paid in
Capital
Retained
Earnings
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
Total
Balance at December 31, 2022
$ 1,336 $ (5,938,116) $ 1,515,874 $ 3,473,192 $ (60,211) $ (1,007,925)
Net income 238,728 238,728
Dividends declared ($1.38 per common share)
(111,986) (111,986)
Dividends paid in shares 44 44
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 2,775 2,775
Common stock issued 2 2
Shares withheld for tax withholding
(43,960) (43,960)
Compensation payable in common stock 20,988 20,988
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury -
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
(30) (30)
Balance at March 31, 2023
1,338 (5,982,106) 1,536,906 3,599,934 (57,436) (901,364)
Net income 246,825 246,825
Dividends declared ($1.38 per common share)
(110,383) (110,383)
Dividends paid in shares - 33 33
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 791 791
Common stock issued - -
Shares withheld for tax withholding
(611) (611)
Compensation payable in common stock 16,426 16,426
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury (444,655) (444,655)
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
(730) (730)
Balance at June 30, 2023
$ 1,338 $ (6,428,102) $ 1,553,365 $ 3,736,376 $ (56,645) $ (1,193,668)
Net income 259,659 259,659
Dividends declared ($1.38 per common share)
(109,847) (109,847)
Dividends paid in shares 30 30
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax (4,377) (4,377)
Common stock issued - -
Shares withheld for tax withholding and exercises (871) (871)
Compensation payable in common stock 18,047 18,047
Common stock repurchased and held in treasury (18,039) (18,039)
Common stock issued to Directors and
(held in)/released from treasury
(30) (30)
Balance at September 30, 2023
$ 1,338 $ (6,447,042) $ 1,571,442 $ 3,886,188 $ (61,022) $ (1,049,096)
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(in thousands)
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(unaudited) 2024 2023
Cash flows from operating activities
Net income $ 803,613 $ 745,212
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Amortization of intangible assets 121,316 77,543
Stock-based compensation expense 72,235 55,375
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements 12,639 15,911
Amortization of right of use assets 19,582 17,484
Amortization of debt origination fees 3,856 3,791
Loss on extinguishment of debt 1,510 -
Deferred taxes 32,085 (30,973)
Other adjustments 7,915 1,199
Changes in assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable 194,233 58,132
Prepaid income taxes (17,882) (17,654)
Prepaid and other assets (6,179) 1,687
Other non-current assets (579) (4,837)
Accounts payable (1,163) (5,719)
Income taxes payable 14,063 11,425
Accrued compensation and related benefits (38,461) (25,599)
Other accrued liabilities 20,664 15,118
Deferred revenue (146,357) (43,571)
Long-term operating lease liabilities (19,294) (16,027)
Other non-current liabilities (2,681) (11,195)
Other (121) (226)
Net cash provided by operating activities 1,070,994 847,076
Cash flows from investing activities
Capitalized software development costs (59,648) (50,080)
Capital expenditures (19,515) (18,942)
Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired (27,467) -
Other (892) (389)
Net cash used in investing activities (107,522) (69,411)
Cash flows from financing activities
Repurchase of common stock held in treasury (511,218) (504,161)
Payment of dividends (383,980) (331,640)
Repayment of borrowings (364,063) (6,563)
Proceeds from borrowings 336,875 -
Payment of debt issuance costs (3,739) -
Net cash used in financing activities (926,125) (842,364)
Effect of exchange rate changes 1,939 (313)
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 39,286 (65,012)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period 461,693 993,564
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period $ 500,979 $ 928,552
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Cash paid for interest $ 124,963 $ 125,068
Cash paid for income taxes, net of refunds received $ 161,423 $ 197,746
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash investing activities
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements in other accrued liabilities $ 3,153 $ 4,734
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash financing activities
Cash dividends declared, but not yet paid $ 1,173 $ 1,453
See Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
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MSCI INC.
NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)
1. INTRODUCTION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION
MSCI Inc., together with its wholly owned subsidiaries (the "Company" or "MSCI") is a leading provider of critical decision support tools and solutions for the global investment community. Our mission-critical offerings help investors address the challenges of a transforming investment landscape and power better investment decisions. Leveraging our knowledge of the global investment process and our expertise in research, data and technology, we enable our clients to understand and analyze key drivers of risk and return and confidently and efficiently build more effective portfolios. Our products and services include indexes; portfolio construction and risk management tools; environmental, social and governance ("ESG") and climate solutions; and private asset data and analysis.
Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates
The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. If not materially different, certain note disclosures included therein have been omitted from these interim condensed consolidated financial statements.
In the opinion of management, all adjustments, which consist of normal recurring adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the interim consolidated financial statements, have been included. The results of operations for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of results for the entire year.
The Company's unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP.The Company makes certain estimates and judgments that can affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities as of the date of the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of operating revenues and expenses during the periods presented. Significant estimates and judgments made by management include such examples as assessment of impairment of goodwill and intangible assets and income taxes. The Company believes that estimates used in the preparation of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements are reasonable; however, actual results could differ materially from these estimates. Inter-company balances and transactions are eliminated in consolidation.
Concentrations
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, BlackRock, Inc. ("BlackRock") accounted for 10.1% and 10.1% of the Company's consolidated operating revenues, respectively. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, BlackRock accounted for 17.8% and 17.0% of the Index segment's operating revenues, respectively. No single customer represented 10.0% or more of operating revenues within the Analytics, ESG and Climate or All Other - Private Assets segments for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023.
Allowance for Credit Losses
Changes in the allowance for credit losses from December 31, 2022 to September 30, 2024 were as follows:
(in thousands) Amount
Balance as of December 31, 2022 $ 2,652
Addition to credit loss expense 2,196
Write-offs, net of recoveries (880)
Balance as of December 31, 2023 $ 3,968
Addition to credit loss expense 2,377
Write-offs, net of recoveries (1,982)
Balance as of September 30, 2024 $ 4,363
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2. RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
In November 2023, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2023-07 "Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures," or ASU 2023-07. The amendments in ASU 2023-07 aim to improve reportable segment disclosure requirements, primarily through enhanced disclosures about significant segment expenses. ASU 2023-07 is effective for the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, and subsequent interim periods, with early adoption permitted. The adoption of ASU 2023-07 will expand our disclosures, and we do not expect the adoption of ASU 2023-07 to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
In December 2023, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2023-09 "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures," or ASU 2023-09. The amendments in ASU 2023-09 aim to enhance the transparency and decision usefulness of income tax disclosures. ASU 2023-09 is effective for the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of this update on disclosures within its consolidated financial statements.
3. REVENUE RECOGNITION
MSCI's operating revenues are reported by product type and each product type may have different timing for recognizing revenue. The Company's operating revenue types are recurring subscriptions, asset-based fees and non-recurring revenues. The Company also disaggregates operating revenues by segment.
The tables that follow present the disaggregated operating revenues for the periods indicated:
For the Three Months Ended September 30, 2024
Segments
(in thousands) Index Analytics ESG and Climate All Other - Private Assets Total
Operating Revenue Types
Recurring subscriptions $ 223,945 $ 168,150 $ 81,536 $ 62,991 $ 536,622
Asset-based fees 168,622 - - - 168,622
Non-recurring 12,315 4,226 2,107 813 19,461
Total $ 404,882 $ 172,376 $ 83,643 $ 63,804 $ 724,705
For the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2024
Segments
(in thousands) Index Analytics ESG and Climate All Other - Private Assets Total
Operating Revenue Types
Recurring subscriptions $ 653,929 $ 490,829 $ 235,954 $ 190,434 $ 1,571,146
Asset-based fees 482,162 - - - 482,162
Non-recurring 39,855 11,508 5,428 2,520 59,311
Total $ 1,175,946 $ 502,337 $ 241,382 $ 192,954 $ 2,112,619
For the Three Months Ended September 30, 2023
Segments
(in thousands) Index Analytics ESG and Climate All Other - Private Assets Total
Operating Revenue Types
Recurring subscriptions $ 206,453 $ 151,269 $ 71,744 $ 35,531 $ 464,997
Asset-based fees 141,066 - - - 141,066
Non-recurring 14,603 2,999 1,294 480 19,376
Total $ 362,122 $ 154,268 $ 73,038 $ 36,011 $ 625,439
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For the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023
Segments
(in thousands) Index Analytics ESG and Climate All Other - Private Assets Total
Operating Revenue Types
Recurring subscriptions $ 603,845 $ 443,276 $ 207,523 $ 111,292 $ 1,365,936
Asset-based fees 412,354 - - - 412,354
Non-recurring 47,621 7,943 3,792 1,168 60,524
Total $ 1,063,820 $ 451,219 $ 211,315 $ 112,460 $ 1,838,814
The tables that follow present the change in accounts receivable, net of allowances, and current deferred revenue between the dates indicated:
(in thousands) Accounts receivable, net of allowances Deferred revenue
Opening (December 31, 2023)
$ 839,555 $ 1,083,864
Closing (September 30, 2024)
643,807 942,840
Increase/(decrease) $ (195,748) $ (141,024)
(in thousands) Accounts receivable, net of allowances Deferred revenue
Opening (December 31, 2022)
$ 663,236 $ 882,886
Closing (September 30, 2023)
603,266 837,479
Increase/(decrease) $ (59,970) $ (45,407)
The amounts of revenues recognized in the periods that were included in the opening current deferred revenue, which reflects contract liability amounts, were $209.9 million and $915.5 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, and $171.8 million and $798.0 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, respectively. The difference between the opening and closing balances of the Company's deferred revenue was primarily driven by an increase in the amortization of deferred revenue to operating revenues, partially offset by an increase in billings. As of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company carried a long-term deferred revenue balance of $28.8 million and $28.8 million, respectively, in "Other non-current liabilities" on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Financial Condition.
For contracts that have a duration of one year or less, the Company has not disclosed either the remaining performance obligation as of the end of the reporting period or when the Company expects to recognize the revenue.The remaining performance obligations for contracts that have a duration of greater than one year and the periods in which they are expected to be recognized are as follows:
As of
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024
First 12-month period
$ 912,103
Second 12-month period
567,796
Third 12-month period
258,819
Periods thereafter 172,423
Total $ 1,911,141
4. EARNINGS PER COMMON SHARE
Basic earnings per share ("EPS") is computed by dividing net income by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted EPS reflects the assumed conversion of all dilutive securities, including, when applicable, restricted stock units ("RSUs"), performance stock units ("PSUs") and performance stock options ("PSOs").
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The following table presents the computation of basic and diluted EPS:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands, except per share data) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 $ 803,613 $ 745,212
Basic weighted average common shares outstanding 78,499 79,116 78,925 79,580
Effect of dilutive securities:
PSUs, RSUs and PSOs 230 384 234 379
Diluted weighted average common shares outstanding 78,729 79,500 79,159 79,959
Earnings per common share:
Basic $ 3.58 $ 3.28 $ 10.18 $ 9.36
Diluted $ 3.57 $ 3.27 $ 10.15 $ 9.32
5. ACQUISITIONS
On October 2, 2023, the Company acquired the remaining 66.4% interest in The Burgiss Group, LLC ("Burgiss") for $696.8 millionin cash (the "step acquisition"). The Company's existing 33.6%interest in Burgiss had a fair value at acquisition date of $353.2 millionwhich resulted in a non-taxable gain of $143.0 million which the Company recognized during the three months ended December 31, 2023. The acquisition of Burgiss provides the Company with comprehensive data and deep expertise in private assets, enabling investors to evaluate fundamental information, measure and compare performance, understand exposures, manage risk, and conduct robust analytics.
The step acquisition has been accounted for as a business combination using the acquisition method of accounting and its results are reported within the Private Capital Solutions operating segment within the All Other - Private Assets reportable segment. With the step acquisition, the Company renamed the Burgiss operating segment to Private Capital Solutions. Prior to the step acquisition, Burgiss was accounted for as an equity-method investment. Therefore, MSCI did not recognize the proportionate share of Burgiss' operating revenues, rather, the Company's proportionate share of the income or loss of Burgiss was reported as a component of other (expense) income, net. A portion of Burgiss's client agreements do not have automatic renewal clauses at the end of the subscription period. Due to the historically high retention rate, the expectation that a substantial portion of the client agreements will be renewed and the nature of the subscription service, the associated revenue is recorded as recurring subscription revenue.
The table below represents the final purchase price allocation to total assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their respective estimated fair values as of October 2, 2023 and the associated estimated useful lives of acquired intangibles as of that date.
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(in thousands) Estimated
Useful Life
Fair Value
Cash and cash equivalents $ 5,397
Accounts receivable 25,839
Prepaid Income Taxes 72
Other current assets 4,201
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements, net 670
Right of use assets 3,443
Other non-current assets 487
Deferred revenue (21,479)
Other current liabilities (13,705)
Long-term operating lease liabilities (2,525)
Intangible assets:
Proprietary data 11 years 229,900
Customer relationships 21 years 179,900
Acquired technology and software 3 years 19,000
Trademarks 1 year 900
Goodwill 617,834
Net assets acquired $ 1,049,934
The Company, with the assistance of third-party valuation experts, calculated the fair values of intangible assets using the relief from royalty method for proprietary data, acquired technology and software and trademarks and the multi-period excess earnings method for customer relationships. The significant assumptions used to estimate the fair value of the acquired intangible assets included forecasted cash flows, which were determined based on certain assumptions that included, among others, projected future revenues, and expected market royalty rates, technology obsolescence rates and discount rates. The weighted average amortization period of the acquired intangible assets was 14.8 years.
The recorded goodwill is primarily attributable to the expected synergies from the utilization of the acquired data as well as expanded market opportunities. Goodwill attributable to the acquisition is deductible for federal income tax purposes to the extent of consideration paid.
Revenue of Burgiss recognized within the consolidated financial statements was $27.0 million and $78.0 millionfor the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively.
On November 1, 2023, MSCI completed the acquisition of Trove Research Ltd ("Trove"), a carbon markets intelligence provider. Trove is a part of the ESG and Climate operating segment.
On January 2, 2024, MSCI completed the acquisition of Fabric RQ, Inc. ("Fabric"), a wealth technology platform specializing in portfolio design, customization and analytics for wealth managers and advisors. Fabric is a part of the Analytics operating segment. The contingent consideration related to Fabric is payable based upon the future product sales of the acquired business.
On April 16, 2024, MSCI completed the acquisition of Foxberry Ltd. ("Foxberry"), a front-office index technology platform. Foxberry is a part of the Index operating segment. The contingent consideration related to Foxberry is payable based upon the achievement of integration metrics related to the operation of the platform.
The Company recognizes the fair value of contingent consideration at the date of acquisition. The liability associated with any contingent consideration is remeasured to fair value at each reporting date subsequent to the acquisition and changes in the fair value are recorded in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.
The following table presents the preliminary acquired balances related to the acquisitions of Trove, Fabric and Foxberry:
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(in thousands, except weighted average amortization period of intangible asset) Trove Fabric Foxberry
Acquisition Date
November 1, 2023 January 2, 2024 April 16, 2024
Cash payments
$ 37,465 $ 7,959 $ 20,945
Deferred payments - - 2,529
Contingent consideration liability - 8,146 19,094
Aggregate purchase price
$ 37,465 $ 16,105 $ 42,568
Net tangible assets acquired (liabilities assumed)
$ (4,787) $ (226) $ 1,748
Intangible assets
7,705 11,300 22,500
Goodwill
34,547 5,031 18,320
Aggregate purchase price
$ 37,465 $ 16,105 $ 42,568
Weighted average amortization period of intangible assets (years)
13.0 9.1 7.9
The fair values of the contingent consideration were determined based on management estimates and assumptions which primarily include forecasted product sales, probability of achievement of certain integration targets and discount rates. The Company classifies these liabilities as Level 3 within the fair value hierarchy, as the measurement is based on inputs that are not observable in the market. As of September 30, 2024, the fair value of the contingent consideration was $28.2 million, of which $9.3 million is included in "Other accrued liabilities" and $18.9 million is included in "Other non-current liabilities" on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Financial Condition.
Changes in the Company's Level 3 financial liabilities for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, were as follows:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Beginning balance $ 27,746 $ - $ - $ -
Additions of contingent consideration1
- - 27,240 -
Change in fair value 448 - 954 -
Payments - - - -
Ending Balance $ 28,194 $ - $ 28,194 $ -
___________________________
(1)Reflects balance of contingent consideration at acquisition date fair value.
The recorded goodwill for Trove is primarily attributable to expected synergies from the utilization of the acquired data as well as expanded market opportunities. The recorded goodwill amounts for Fabric and Foxberry are primarily attributable to expected synergies from the utilization of the acquired technology platforms. Goodwill attributable to the acquisitions of Fabric, Trove and Foxberry are not deductible for federal income tax purposes.
Revenue of Trove, Fabric and Foxberry recognized within the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Income was $1.1 million, $189 thousand and $207 thousand for the three months ended September 30, 2024, respectively. Revenue of Trove, Fabric and Foxberry recognized within the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Income was $3.5 million, $526 thousand and $385 thousand for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively.
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6. PROPERTY, EQUIPMENT AND LEASEHOLD IMPROVEMENTS, NET
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements, net consisted of the following as of the dates indicated:
As of
September 30, December 31,
(in thousands) 2024 2023
Computer & related equipment $ 167,939 $ 192,008
Furniture & fixtures 15,980 16,169
Leasehold improvements 56,412 58,582
Work-in-process 1,646 897
Subtotal 241,977 267,656
Accumulated depreciation and amortization (179,660) (211,736)
Property, equipment and leasehold improvements, net $ 62,317 $ 55,920
Depreciation and amortization expense of property, equipment and leasehold improvements was $4.3 million and $5.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Depreciation and amortization expense of property, equipment and leasehold improvements was $12.6 million and $15.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
7. GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET
Goodwill
The following table presents goodwill by reportable segment:
(in thousands) Index Analytics ESG and Climate All Other - Private Assets Total
Goodwill at December 31, 2023 $ 1,203,435 $ 290,976 $ 84,724 $ 1,308,557 $ 2,887,692
Acquisitions (1)
18,320 5,031 (365) (582) 22,404
Foreign exchange translation adjustment 3,095 - 1,876 1,035 6,006
Goodwill at September 30, 2024 $ 1,224,850 $ 296,007 $ 86,235 $ 1,309,010 $ 2,916,102
___________________________
(1)Reflects the impact of the acquisitions of Foxberry, Fabric, Trove and Burgiss.
The Company completed its annual goodwill impairment test as of July 1, 2024 on its Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate, Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions reporting units, which are also the Company's operating segments, and no impairments were noted. The Company performed a test for impairment and determined that it was more likely than not that the fair value of each reporting unit was greater than its carrying value. See Note 12, "Segment Information," for further descriptions of the operating segments.
Intangible Assets, Net
The following table presents the amount of amortization expense related to intangible assets by category for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Amortization expense of acquired intangible assets $ 26,066 $ 15,748 $ 77,226 $ 47,430
Amortization expense of internally developed capitalized software 15,873 10,974 44,090 30,113
Total amortization of intangible assets expense $ 41,939 $ 26,722 $ 121,316 $ 77,543
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The gross carrying and accumulated amortization amounts related to the Company's intangible assets were as follows:
September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023
(in thousands) Gross intangible assets: Accumulated amortization: Net intangible assets: Gross intangible assets: Accumulated amortization: Net intangible assets:
Customer relationships $ 716,121 $ (369,817) $ 346,304 $ 709,299 $ (340,248) $ 369,051
Proprietary data 454,477 (96,417) 358,060 452,543 (64,694) 387,849
Acquired technology and software 258,108 (195,608) 62,500 228,785 (185,583) 43,202
Trademarks 209,090 (179,238) 29,852 209,090 (171,715) 37,375
Internally developed capitalized software 297,489 (162,777) 134,712 237,060 (118,303) 118,757
Total $ 1,935,285 $ (1,003,857) $ 931,428 $ 1,836,777 $ (880,543) $ 956,234
The following table presents the estimated amortization expense for the remainder of the year ending December 31, 2024 and succeeding years:
Years Ending December 31,
(in thousands)
Amortization
Expense
Remainder of 2024 $ 43,292
2025 151,514
2026 115,881
2027 83,803
2028 70,413
Thereafter 466,525
Total $ 931,428
8. DEBT
As of September 30, 2024, the Company had outstanding an aggregate of $4,200.0 million in senior unsecured notes (collectively, the "Senior Notes") and $311.9 million under the Revolving Credit Facility (as defined below) as presented in the table below:
Principal
Amount
Outstanding at
Carrying
Value at
Carrying
Value at
Fair
Value at
Fair
Value at
(in thousands) Maturity Date September 30, 2024 September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023 September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023
Debt
4.000% senior unsecured notes due 2029
November 15, 2029
$ 1,000,000 $ 994,455 $ 993,637 $ 969,260 $ 941,090
3.625% senior unsecured notes due 2030
September 1, 2030
900,000 896,083 895,587 845,694 815,526
3.875% senior unsecured notes due 2031
February 15, 2031
1,000,000 992,981 992,161 946,870 914,360
3.625% senior unsecured notes due 2031
November 1, 2031
600,000 595,345 594,852 552,696 529,458
3.250% senior unsecured notes due 2033
August 15, 2033
700,000 694,033 693,532 616,938 586,509
Variable rate Tranche A Term Loans due 2027
February 16, 2027
- - 337,959 - 337,367
Variable rate revolving loan commitments(1)
January 26, 2029 311,875 311,875 - 310,316 -
Total debt $ 4,511,875 $ 4,484,772 $ 4,507,728 $ 4,241,774 $ 4,124,310
___________________________
(1)As of September 30, 2024, there were $4.3 million in unamortized deferred financing fees associated with the variable rate revolving loan commitments of which $1.0 million is included in "Prepaid and other assets," and $3.3 million is included in "Other non-current assets" on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Financial Condition.
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Maturities of the Company's principal debt payments as of September 30, 2024 are as follows:
Maturity of Principal Debt Payments
(in thousands)
Amounts
Remainder of 2024 $ -
2025 -
2026 -
2027 -
2028 -
Thereafter 4,511,875
Total debt $ 4,511,875
Interest payments attributable to the Company's outstanding indebtedness are due as presented in the following table:
Interest payment frequency First interest
payment date
Senior Notes and Revolving Loan Commitments
4.000% senior unsecured notes due 2029
Semi-Annual May 15
3.625% senior unsecured notes due 2030
Semi-Annual March 1
3.875% senior unsecured notes due 2031
Semi-Annual June 1
3.625% senior unsecured notes due 2031
Semi-Annual May 1
3.250% senior unsecured notes due 2033
Semi-Annual February 15
Variable rate revolving loan commitments(1)
Variable February 26
___________________________
(1)The first payment occurred on February 26, 2024.
The fair market value of the Company's debt obligations represent Level 2 valuations. The Company utilized the market approach and obtained security pricing from a vendor who used broker quotes and third-party pricing services to determine fair values.
Credit Agreement. Since November 20, 2014, the Company has maintained a revolving credit agreement with a syndicate of banks. On January 26, 2024, the Company entered into a Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement"), amending and restating in its entirety the Company's prior Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Prior Credit Agreement"). The Credit Agreement makes available to the Company an aggregate of $1,250.0 million of revolving loan commitments under a revolving credit facility (the "Revolving Credit Facility"), which may be drawn until January 26, 2029. At the closing of the Credit Agreement, the Company drew $336.9 million on the Revolving Credit Facility and primarily used the proceeds to prepay all senior unsecured Tranche A Term Loans (the "Tranche A Term Loans") under the term loan A facility (the "TLA Facility") under the Prior Credit Agreement. The obligations under the Credit Agreement are general unsecured obligations of the Company. The prepayment of the Tranche A Term Loans and the entry into the Credit Agreement resulted in an approximately $1.5 million loss on extinguishment related to unamortized debt issuance costs during the three months ended March 31, 2024. The loss on extinguishment was recorded in "Other expense (income)" on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Income.
In September 2024, the Company repaid $25.0 million of the outstanding balance of the revolving loans under the Revolving Credit Facility, such that $311.9 million of the revolving loans were outstanding at September 30, 2024.
Interest on the revolving loans under the Credit Agreement accrues, at a variable rate, based on the secured overnight funding rate ("SOFR") or the alternate base rate ("Base Rate"), plus, in each case, an applicable margin to be determined based on the credit ratings of the Company's senior, unsecured long-term debt and will be due on each Interest Payment Date (as defined in the Credit Agreement). So long as the credit rating for the Company's senior, unsecured long-term debt is set at BBB-/BBB- by each of S&P and Fitch, respectively, the applicable margin is 0.50% for Base Rate loans, and 1.50% for SOFR loans. At September 30, 2024, the interest rate on the revolving loans under the Revolving Credit Facility was 6.45%.
Interest on the Tranche A Term Loans under the TLA Facility accrued, at a variable rate, based on the secured overnight funding rate ("SOFR") or the alternate base rate ("Base Rate"), plus, in each case, an applicable margin and was due on each Interest Payment Date (as defined in the Prior Credit Agreement). The applicable margin was calculated by reference to the Company's Consolidated Leverage Ratio (as defined in the Credit Agreement) and ranged between 1.50% to 2.00% for SOFR loans, and 0.50% to 1.00% for Base Rate loans.
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In connection with the closings of the Senior Notes offerings, entry into the Prior Credit Agreement and the subsequent amendments thereto and entry into the Credit Agreement, the Company paid certain financing fees which, together with the existing fees related to prior credit facilities, are being amortized over their related lives. At September 30, 2024, $31.4 million of the deferred financing fees and premium remain unamortized, $1.0 million of which is included in "Prepaid and other assets," $3.3 million of which is included in "Other non-current assets" and $27.1 million of which is included in "Long-term debt" on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Financial Condition.
9. LEASES
The components of lease expense (income) of the Company's operating leases are as follows:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating lease expenses $ 9,339 $ 7,278 $ 24,133 $ 21,570
Variable lease costs 275 1,022 1,894 2,843
Short-term lease costs 228 108 667 547
Sublease income (904) (1,276) (2,650) (3,827)
Total lease costs $ 8,938 $ 7,132 $ 24,044 $ 21,133
Maturities of the Company's operating lease liabilities as of September 30, 2024 are as follows:
Maturity of Lease Liabilities Operating
(in thousands) Leases
Remainder of 2024 $ 6,361
2025 32,553
2026 30,361
2027 23,945
2028 23,175
Thereafter 52,631
Total lease payments $ 169,026
Less: Interest (19,622)
Present value of lease liabilities $ 149,404
Other accrued liabilities $ 25,465
Long-term operating lease liabilities $ 123,939
Weighted-average remaining lease term and discount rate for the Company's operating leases are as follows:
As of
September 30, December 31,
Lease Term and Discount Rate 2024 2023
Weighted-average remaining lease term (years) 6.29 7.04
Weighted-average discount rate 3.99 % 3.66 %
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Other information related to the Company's operating leases are as follows:
Other Information Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023
Operating cash flows used for operating leases $ 23,882 $ 22,918
Right of use assets obtained in exchange for new
operating lease liabilities
$ 26,926 $ 8,896
10. SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT)
Return of capital
On July 28, 2022, the Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase program (the "2022 Repurchase Program") for the purchase of up to $1,000.0 million worth of shares of MSCI's common stock in addition to the $539.1 million of authorization then remaining under a previously existing share repurchase program that was replaced by, and incorporated into, the 2022 Repurchase Program for a total of $1,539.1 million of stock repurchase authorization available under the 2022 Repurchase Program.
Share repurchases made pursuant to the 2022 Repurchase Program may take place in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions from time to time based on market and other conditions. This authorization may be modified, suspended or terminated by the Board of Directors at any time without prior notice. As of September 30, 2024, there was $405.4 million of available authorization remaining under the 2022 Repurchase Program.
The following table provides information with respect to repurchases of the Company's common stock made on the open market:
Nine months ended
(in thousands, except per share data)
Average
Price
Paid Per
Share
Total
Number of
Shares
Repurchased
Dollar
Value of
Shares
Repurchased(1)
September 30, 2024 $ 500.52 880 $ 440,265
September 30, 2023 $ 468.26 980 $ 458,721
___________________________
(1)The values in this column exclude the 1% excise tax incurred on share repurchases pursuant to the Inflation Reduction Act. Any excise tax incurred is recognized as part of the cost of the shares acquired in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Shareholders' Equity (Deficit).
The following table presents dividends declared per common share as well as total amounts declared, distributed and deferred for the periods indicated:
Dividends
(in thousands, except per share data) Per Share Declared Distributed (Released)/Deferred
2024
Three Months Ended March 31, $ 1.60 $ 129,444 $ 131,378 $ (1,934)
Three Months Ended June 30, 1.60 127,304 126,958 346
Three Months Ended September 30, 1.60 126,185 125,763 422
Total $ 4.80 $ 382,933 $ 384,099 $ (1,166)
2023
Three Months Ended March 31, $ 1.38 $ 111,986 $ 112,189 $ (203)
Three Months Ended June 30, 1.38 110,383 110,147 236
Three Months Ended September 30, 1.38 109,847 109,408 439
Total $ 4.14 $ 332,216 $ 331,744 $ 472
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Common Stock
The following table presents activity related to shares of common stock issued and repurchased during the nine months ended September 30, 2024:
Common Stock Treasury Common Stock
Issued Stock Outstanding
Balance at December 31, 2023
133,817,332 (54,726,120) 79,091,212
Dividend payable/paid 61 - 61
Common stock issued 252,637 - 252,637
Shares withheld for tax withholding - (119,861) (119,861)
Shares repurchased under stock repurchase programs - - -
Shares issued to directors 67 (67) -
Balance at March 31, 2024
134,070,097 (54,846,048) 79,224,049
Dividend payable/paid - - -
Common stock issued 779 - 779
Shares withheld for tax withholding - (359) (359)
Shares repurchased under stock repurchase programs - (499,224) (499,224)
Shares issued to directors 4,941 19,499 24,440
Balance at June 30, 2024
134,075,817 (55,326,132) 78,749,685
Dividend payable/paid - - -
Common stock issued 3,301 - 3,301
Shares withheld for tax withholding - (1,387) (1,387)
Shares repurchased under stock repurchase programs - (380,397) (380,397)
Shares issued to directors 13 (13) -
Balance at September 30, 2024
134,079,131 (55,707,929) 78,371,202
11. INCOME TAXES
The Company's provision for income taxes was $189.2 million and $156.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
The effective tax rate of 19.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain favorable discrete items totaling $12.4 million, primarily related to $15.9 million of excess tax benefits recognized on share-based compensation vested during the period, partially offset by $3.5 million related to prior-year items.
The effective tax rate of 17.3% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain favorable discrete items totaling $19.8 million, primarily related to $11.4 million of excess tax benefits recognized on share-based compensation vested during the period and $8.4 million related to prior-year items.
The Company is under or open to examination by the IRS and other tax authorities in certain jurisdictions, including foreign jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland and India, and states in the United States in which the Company has significant operations, such as New York and California. The tax years currently under or open to examination vary by jurisdiction but include years from 2008 onwards.
The Company regularly assesses the likelihood of additional assessments in each of the taxing jurisdictions in which it files income tax returns. The Company has established unrecognized tax benefits that the Company believes are adequate in relation to the potential for additional assessments. Once established, the Company adjusts unrecognized tax benefits only when more information is available or when an event occurs necessitating a change. Based on the current status of income tax audits, the Company believes it is reasonably possible that the total amount of unrecognized benefits may decrease by approximately $22.1 million in the next twelve months as a result of the resolution of prior-year items.
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During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company's unrecognized tax benefits increased by $0.1 million and $2.2 million, respectively.
12. SEGMENT INFORMATION
The Company has five operating segments: Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate, Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions, which are presented as the following four reportable segments: Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate and All Other - Private Assets. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company renamed the Burgiss operating segment to Private Capital Solutions. The operating segments of Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions do not individually meet the segment reporting thresholds and have been combined and presented as part of All Other - Private Assets reportable segment.
The Index operating segment offers equity and fixed income indexes. The indexes are used in many areas of the investment process, including for developing indexed financial products (e.g., Exchange Traded Funds ("ETFs"), mutual funds, annuities, futures, options, structured products and over-the-counter derivatives), performance benchmarking, portfolio construction and rebalancing, and asset allocation.
The Analytics operating segment offers risk management, performance attribution and portfolio management content, applications and services that provide clients with an integrated view of risk and return and tools for analyzing market, credit, liquidity, counterparty and climate risk across all major asset classes, spanning short-, medium- and long-term time horizons. Clients access Analytics tools and content through MSCI's proprietary applications and application programming interfaces, third-party applications or directly through their own platforms. Additionally, the Analytics operating segment also provides various managed services to help clients operate more efficiently, including consolidation of client portfolio data from various sources, review and reconciliation of input data and results, and customized reporting.
The ESG and Climate operating segment offers products and services that help institutional investors understand how ESG and climate considerations can impact the long-term risk and return of their portfolio and individual security-level investments. In addition, the ESG and Climate operating segment provides data, ratings, research and tools to help investors navigate increasing regulation, meet new client demands and better integrate ESG and climate elements into their investment processes.
The Real Assets operating segment offers data, benchmarks, return-analytics, climate assessments and market insights for tangible assets such as real estate and infrastructure. In addition, Real Assets performance and risk analytics range from enterprise-wide to property-specific analysis. The Real Assets operating segment also provides business intelligence products to real estate owners, managers, developers and brokers worldwide.
Prior to the step acquisition of Burgiss on October 2, 2023, the Company's ownership interest in Burgiss was classified as an equity-method investment. Therefore, prior to the acquisition of Burgiss, the All Other - Private Assets segment did not include the Company's proportionate share of operating revenues and Adjusted EBITDA related to Burgiss. The Company's proportionate share of the income or loss from its equity-method investment in Burgiss was not a component of Adjusted EBITDA as it was reported as a component of other (expense) income, net. Following the acquisition, the consolidated results of Burgiss were included in the Company's Private Capital Solutions operating segment.
The Private Capital Solutions operating segment offers a suite of tools to help private asset investors across mission-critical workflows, such as sourcing terms and conditions, evaluating operating performance of underlying portfolio companies, managing risk and other activities supporting private capital investing.
The Chief Operating Decision Maker ("CODM") measures and evaluates reportable segments based on segment operating revenues as well as Adjusted EBITDA and other measures. The Company excludes the following items from segment Adjusted EBITDA: provision for income taxes, other expense (income), net, depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements, amortization of intangible assets and, at times, certain other transactions or adjustments, including certain acquisition-related integration and transaction costs, that the CODM does not consider for the purposes of making decisions to allocate resources among segments or to assess segment performance. Although these amounts are excluded from segment Adjusted EBITDA, they are included in reported consolidated net income and are included in the reconciliation that follows.
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The following table presents operating revenues by reportable segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues
Index $ 404,882 $ 362,122 $ 1,175,946 $ 1,063,820
Analytics 172,376 154,268 502,337 451,219
ESG and Climate 83,643 73,038 241,382 211,315
All Other - Private Assets 63,804 36,011 192,954 112,460
Total $ 724,705 $ 625,439 $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814
The following table presents segment profitability and a reconciliation to net income for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Index Adjusted EBITDA $ 314,148 $ 277,672 $ 898,898 $ 808,424
Analytics Adjusted EBITDA 90,287 71,781 244,171 197,710
ESG and Climate Adjusted EBITDA 29,989 25,440 75,010 66,114
All Other - Private Assets Adjusted EBITDA 16,278 11,396 46,151 36,076
Total reportable segment profitability
450,702 386,289 1,264,230 1,108,324
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 121,316 77,543
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements 4,332 5,252 12,639 15,911
Acquisition-related integration and transaction costs(1)
3,097 1,006 6,951 1,006
Operating income 401,334 353,309 1,123,324 1,013,864
Other expense (income), net 44,398 35,653 130,501 112,678
Provision for income taxes 76,035 57,997 189,210 155,974
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 $ 803,613 $ 745,212
___________________________
(1)Represents transaction expenses and other costs directly related to the acquisition and integration of acquired businesses, including professional fees, severance expenses, regulatory filing fees and other costs, in each case that are incurred no later than 12 months after the close of the relevant acquisition.
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Operating revenues by geography are primarily based on the shipping address of the ultimate customer utilizing the product. The following table presents operating revenues by geographic area for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues
Americas:
United States $ 297,577 $ 246,089 $ 868,695 $ 740,939
Other 32,631 28,243 95,976 83,353
Total Americas 330,208 274,332 964,671 824,292
Europe, the Middle East and Africa ("EMEA"):
United Kingdom 122,384 105,036 351,922 296,388
Other 157,739 142,826 466,701 420,996
Total EMEA 280,123 247,862 818,623 717,384
Asia & Australia:
Japan 28,833 24,956 84,377 75,258
Other 85,541 78,289 244,948 221,880
Total Asia & Australia 114,374 103,245 329,325 297,138
Total $ 724,705 $ 625,439 $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814
Long-lived assets consist of property, equipment and leasehold improvements, right of use assets and internally developed capitalized software, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization. The following table presents long-lived assets by geographic area on the dates indicated:
As of
September 30, December 31,
(in thousands) 2024 2023
Long-lived assets
Americas:
United States $ 241,336 $ 204,238
Other 8,484 11,585
Total Americas 249,820 215,823
EMEA:
United Kingdom 18,033 18,403
Other 20,955 22,072
Total EMEA 38,988 40,475
Asia & Australia:
Japan 1,004 1,321
Other 28,943 31,507
Total Asia & Australia 29,947 32,828
Total $ 318,755 $ 289,126
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13. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS
On October 28, 2024, the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.60 per share for the three months ending December 31, 2024 ("fourth quarter 2024"). The fourth quarter 2024 dividend is payable on November 29, 2024 to shareholders of record as of the close of trading on November 15, 2024.
On October 28, 2024, the Board of Directors authorized an additional stock repurchase program for the purchase of up to $1.5 billion worth of shares of MSCI's common stock (together with the $405.4 million of authorization then remaining under the 2022 Repurchase Program, the "2024 Repurchase Program"). Share repurchases made pursuant to the 2024 Repurchase Program may take place in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions from time to time based on market and other conditions. This authorization may be modified, suspended or terminated by the Board of Directors at any time without prior notice.
Subsequent to September 30, 2024, the Company repaid $125.0 million of the outstanding balance of the revolving loans under the Revolving Credit Facility.
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Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of the financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this Form 10-Q and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (the "Form 10-K"). 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 or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified below and those discussed in "Item 1A.-Risk Factors," in our Form 10-K.
Except as the context otherwise indicates, the terms "MSCI," the "Company," "we," "our" and "us" refer to MSCI Inc., together with its subsidiaries.
Overview
We are a leading provider of critical decision support tools and solutions for the global investment community. Our mission-critical offerings help investors address the challenges of a transforming investment landscape and power better investment decisions. Leveraging our knowledge of the global investment process and our expertise in research, data and technology, we enable our clients to understand and analyze key drivers of risk and return and confidently and efficiently build more effective portfolios. The Company has five operating segments: Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate, Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions (formerly Burgiss), which are presented as the following four reportable segments: Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate and All Other -Private Assets.
During the year ended December 31, 2023, we renamed the The Burgiss Group, LLC ("Burgiss") operating segment to Private Capital Solutions. The operating segments of Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions do not individually meet the segment reporting thresholds and have been combined and presented as part of the All Other - Private Assets reportable segment.
Our growth strategy includes: (a) extending leadership in research-enhanced content across asset classes, (b) leading the enablement of ESG and climate investment integration, (c) enhancing distribution and content-enabling technology, (d) expanding solutions that empower client customization, (e) strengthening client relationships and growing into strategic partnerships with clients and (f) executing strategic relationships and acquisitions with complementary data, content and technology companies. For more information about our Company's operations, see "Item 1: Business" in our Form 10-K.
As of September 30, 2024, we served approximately 6,9001clients in more than 95 countries.
Our principal business model is generally to license annual, recurring subscriptions for the majority of our Index, Analytics and ESG and Climate products and services for a fee due in advance of the service period. Private Assets products are also licensed annually through subscriptions, which are generally recurring, for a fee which is paid either in advance when products are generally delivered ratably over the subscription period or in arrears after the product is delivered. A portion of our fees comes from clients who use our indexes as the basis for index-linked investment products. Such fees are primarily based on a client's assets under management ("AUM"), trading volumes and fee levels.
In evaluating our financial performance, we focus on revenue and profit growth. This includes evaluating results based on generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP"), as well as non-GAAP measures, for the Company as a whole and by operating segment.
We present revenues disaggregated by types and by segments, which represent our major product lines. We also review expenses by activity, which provides more transparency into how resources are being deployed. In addition, we utilize operating metrics including Run Rate, subscription sales and Retention Rate to manage and assess performance and to provide deeper insights into the recurring portion of our business.
In the discussion that follows, we provide certain variances excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and acquisitions. Foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations reflect the difference between the current period results as reported compared to the current period results recalculated using the foreign currency exchange rates in effect for the comparable prior period. While operating revenues adjusted for the impact of foreign currency fluctuations includes asset-based fees that have been adjusted for the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, the underlying AUM, which is the primary component of asset-based fees, is not adjusted for foreign currency fluctuations. Approximately three-fifths of the AUM is invested in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, and accordingly, any such impact is excluded from the disclosed foreign currency-adjusted variances.
(1)1Represents the aggregate of all related clients under their respective parent entity. At acquisition, we align an acquired company's client count to our methodology.
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A material portion of our revenues is concentrated in some of our largest clients. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, our largest client organization by revenue, BlackRock, accounted for 10.1% of our consolidated operating revenues. 96.1% of the operating revenues from BlackRock come from fees based on the assets in BlackRock's ETFs and non-ETF products that are based on our indexes.
The discussion of our results of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 are presented below. The results of operations for interim periods may not be indicative of future results.
Factors Affecting the Comparability of Results
Acquisitions of Burgiss, Trove, Fabric and Foxberry
On October 2, 2023, the Company acquired the remaining 66.4% interest in Burgiss for $696.8 million in cash. The Company's existing 33.6% interest had a fair value at acquisition date of $353.2 million which resulted in a non-taxable gain of $143.0 million for the three months ending December 31, 2023.
Prior to the acquisition, the Company's ownership interest in Burgiss was classified as an equity-method investment. Therefore, the All Other - Private Assets segment did not include the Company's proportionate share of operating revenues and Adjusted EBITDA related to Burgiss. The Company's proportionate share of the income or loss from its equity-method investment in Burgiss was reported as a component of other (expense) income, net.
Following the acquisition, the consolidated results of Burgiss are included in the Company's Private Capital Solutions operating segment (formerly known as Burgiss), which is combined and presented as part of the All Other - Private Assets reportable segment. See Note 5, "Acquisitions," and Note 12, "Segment Information" of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included herein for additional information on the acquisition of Burgiss.
On November 1, 2023, MSCI completed the acquisition of Trove Research Ltd ("Trove"), a carbon markets intelligence provider for approximately $37.5 million in cash. Trove is a part of the ESG and Climate operating segment.
On January 2, 2024, MSCI completed the acquisition of Fabric RQ, Inc. ("Fabric"), a wealth technology platform specializing in portfolio design, customization and analytics for wealth managers and advisors for approximately $8.0 million in cash and contingent consideration with an acquisition date fair value of $8.1 million that is payable based on future sales of Fabric's products. Fabric is a part of the Analytics operating segment.
On April 16, 2024, MSCI completed the acquisition of Foxberry Ltd. ("Foxberry"), a front-office index technology platform for approximately $23.5 million in cash and contingent consideration with an acquisition date fair value of $19.1 million that is payable based upon the achievement of metrics related to the operation of the platform. Foxberry is a part of the Index operating segment. We collectively refer to the acquisitions of Burgiss, Trove, Fabric and Foxberry as the "recent acquisitions".
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
We describe our significant accounting policies in Note 1, "Introduction and Basis of Presentation," of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in our Form 10-K. There have been no significant changes in our accounting policies since the end of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 or critical accounting estimates applied in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, except as described below.
Goodwill
We recognize goodwill in business combination transactions when the purchase price exceeds the fair value of the acquired net tangible and separately identifiable intangible assets. We test goodwill for impairment annually on July 1 or when interim triggers arise. The test for impairment was performed at the reporting unit level, and we used an equal weighting of the income approach and the market approach to estimate the fair value of each reporting unit.
The income approach requires significant judgement in estimating future cash flows, including assumptions, amongst others, about revenue growth rates and operating margins, and the selection of an appropriate discount rate, which reflects the reporting unit's cost of capital. Forecasted future cash flows are estimated based on a combination of historical experience and assumptions regarding future growth and profitability of each reporting unit. Discount rates are selected for each reporting unit being valued based on each reporting unit's estimated weighted-average cost of capital. The weighted-average cost of capital is estimated based on both the capital structure that we believe a market participant would utilize as well as the discount rates of guideline public companies that have similar characteristics to each reporting unit being valued, adjusted for the risk inherent in each reporting unit. Terminal growth rates are selected based on growth rates used during the reporting unit's forecast period in combination with economic conditions. The market approach utilizes valuation multiples of revenue and cash flows derived from guideline public companies that have similar characteristics to each reporting unit being valued. Selecting appropriate guideline companies, valuation multiples and other key
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assumptions such as revenue growth rates and discount rates requires significant management judgment, and changes to these estimates could materially impact the fair value determination of each reporting unit. We perform sensitivity analyses around key assumptions in order to assess the reasonableness of the assumptions and the impact on the estimated fair value.
Impairment occurs when the estimated fair value of the reporting unit is below the carrying value. As of July 1, 2024, all reporting units had fair values exceeding their carrying values. As a result, no goodwill impairment was recorded as of this date.
We completed our annual goodwill impairment test as of July 1, 2024 on our Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate, Real Assets and Private Capital Solutions reporting units, which are also our operating segments. As of July 1, 2024, the fair value of all reporting units exceeded their respective carrying values. At September 30, 2024, the carrying value of goodwill within the Private Capital Solutions reporting unit was $617.8 million. As of July 1, 2024, and given the recent step acquisition of Burgiss on October 2, 2023, the fair value of the Private Capital Solutions reporting unit exceeded its carrying value by approximately 10%, making it vulnerable to potential future impairment. If we experience a prolonged or severe period of weakness in the business environment, financial markets, the performance of one or more of our recently acquired companies or reporting units, or our common stock price, or if economic conditions differ significantly from management's assumptions, our goodwill could be impaired in the future, which may be material to our results of operations and financial position.
For all of our reporting units, individually, a hypothetical decrease in revenue growth rates by 100 basis points or a hypothetical 100 basis point increase in the weighted average cost of capital would not result in an impairment.
Results of Operations
Operating Revenues
Our operating revenues are grouped by the following types: recurring subscriptions, asset-based fees and non-recurring. We also group operating revenues by major product or reportable segment as follows: Index, Analytics, ESG and Climate, and All Other - Private Assets.
The following table presents operating revenues by type for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Recurring subscriptions $ 536,622 $ 464,997 15.4 % $ 1,571,146 $ 1,365,936 15.0 %
Asset-based fees 168,622 141,066 19.5 % 482,162 412,354 16.9 %
Non-recurring 19,461 19,376 0.4 % 59,311 60,524 (2.0 %)
Total operating revenues $ 724,705 $ 625,439 15.9 % $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814 14.9 %
Total operating revenues increased 15.9% for the three months ended September 30, 2024. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, total operating revenues would have increased 11.1%.
Operating revenues from recurring subscriptions increased 15.4% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, driven by growth in All Other - Private Assets products, which increased $27.5 million, or 77.3%, which included $26.7 million of Burgiss revenue; Index products, which increased $17.5 million, or 8.5%; Analytics products, which increased $16.9 million, or 11.2%, and ESG and Climate products, which increased $9.8 million, or 13.6%. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, operating revenues from recurring subscriptions would have increased 9.0%.
Operating revenues from asset-based fees increased 19.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth in revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes. Operating revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes increased by 19.7% and 21.1%, respectively, primarily driven by an increase in average AUM. Operating revenues from exchange traded futures and options contracts linked to MSCI indexes increased by 11.3%, driven by volume increases.
Total operating revenues increased 14.9% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, total operating revenues would have increased 10.4%.
Operating revenues from recurring subscriptions increased 15.0% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, driven by growth in All Other - Private Assets products, which increased $79.1 million, or 71.1%, which included $77.1 million of Burgiss revenue; Index products, which increased $50.1 million, or 8.3%; Analytics products, which increased $47.6 million, or 10.7%; and
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ESG and Climate products, which increased $28.4 million, or 13.7%. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, operating revenues from recurring subscriptions would have increased 9.0%.
Operating revenues from asset-based fees increased 16.9% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth in revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes. Operating revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes increased by 17.9% and 19.4%, respectively, primarily driven by an increase in average AUM.
The following table presents the value of AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and the sequential change of such assets as of the end of each of the periods indicated:
Period Ended
2023 2024
(in billions)
March
31,
June
30,
September
30,
December
31,
March
31,
June
30,
September
30,
AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes(1), (2)
$ 1,305.4 $ 1,372.5 $ 1,322.8 $ 1,468.9 $ 1,582.6 $ 1,631.9 $ 1,761.8
Sequential Change in Value
Market Appreciation/(Depreciation) $ 75.1 $ 48.4 $ (56.1) $ 130.5 $ 92.8 $ 21.2 $ 111.3
Cash Inflows 7.4 18.7 6.4 15.6 20.9 28.1 18.6
Total Change $ 82.5 $ 67.1 $ (49.7) $ 146.1 $ 113.7 $ 49.3 $ 129.9
The following table presents the average value of AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes for the periods indicated:
2023 2024
(in billions) March June September December March June September
AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes(1), (2)
Quarterly average $ 1,287.5 $ 1,333.8 $ 1,376.5 $ 1,364.9 $ 1,508.8 $ 1,590.6 $ 1,677.0
Year-to-date average $ 1,287.5 $ 1,310.7 $ 1,332.6 $ 1,340.7 $ 1,508.8 $ 1,549.7 $ 1,592.1
___________________________
(1)The historical values of the AUM in ETFs linked to our equity indexes as of the last day of the month and the monthly average balance can be found under the link "AUM in ETFs Linked to MSCI Equity Indexes" on our Investor Relations homepage at http://ir.msci.com. This information is updated mid-month each month. Information contained on our website is not deemed part of or incorporated by reference into this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or any other report filed with the SEC. The AUM in ETFs also includes AUM in Exchange Traded Notes, the value of which is less than 1.0% of the AUM amounts presented.
(2)The value of AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes is calculated by multiplying the equity ETF net asset value by the number of shares outstanding.
The average value of AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes for the three months ended September 30, 2024, was up $300.5 billion, or 21.8%. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the average value of AUM in ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes was up $259.5 billion, or 19.5%.
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The following table presents operating revenues by reportable segment and revenue type for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues:
Index
Recurring subscriptions $ 223,945 $ 206,453 8.5 % $ 653,929 $ 603,845 8.3 %
Asset-based fees 168,622 141,066 19.5 % 482,162 412,354 16.9 %
Non-recurring 12,315 14,603 (15.7 %) 39,855 47,621 (16.3 %)
Index total 404,882 362,122 11.8 % 1,175,946 1,063,820 10.5 %
Analytics
Recurring subscriptions 168,150 151,269 11.2 % 490,829 443,276 10.7 %
Non-recurring 4,226 2,999 40.9 % 11,508 7,943 44.9 %
Analytics total 172,376 154,268 11.7 % 502,337 451,219 11.3 %
ESG and Climate
Recurring subscriptions 81,536 71,744 13.6 % 235,954 207,523 13.7 %
Non-recurring 2,107 1,294 62.8 % 5,428 3,792 43.1 %
ESG and Climate total 83,643 73,038 14.5 % 241,382 211,315 14.2 %
All Other - Private Assets
Recurring subscriptions 62,991 35,531 77.3 % 190,434 111,292 71.1 %
Non-recurring 813 480 69.4 % 2,520 1,168 115.8 %
All Other - Private Assets total 63,804 36,011 77.2 % 192,954 112,460 71.6 %
Total operating revenues $ 724,705 $ 625,439 15.9 % $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814 14.9 %
Refer to the section titled "Segment Results" that follows for further discussion of segment revenues.
Operating Expenses
We group our operating expenses into the following activity categories:
Cost of revenues;
Selling and marketing;
Research and development ("R&D");
General and administrative ("G&A");
Amortization of intangible assets; and
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements.
Costs are assigned to these activity categories based on the nature of the expense or, when not directly attributable, an estimated allocation based on the type of effort involved. Cost of revenues, selling and marketing, R&D and G&A all include both compensation as well as non-compensation related expenses.
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The following table presents operating expenses by activity category for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating expenses:
Cost of revenues $ 126,192 $ 105,311 19.8 % $ 382,815 $ 324,024 18.1 %
Selling and marketing 70,763 66,581 6.3 % 214,385 201,044 6.6 %
Research and development 38,584 31,438 22.7 % 120,182 92,901 29.4 %
General and administrative 41,561 36,826 12.9 % 137,958 113,527 21.5 %
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 56.9 % 121,316 77,543 56.4 %
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements
4,332 5,252 (17.5 %) 12,639 15,911 (20.6 %)
Total operating expenses $ 323,371 $ 272,130 18.8 % $ 989,295 $ 824,950 19.9 %
Total operating expenses increased 18.8% for the three months ended September 30, 2024. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, the increase would have been 18.9%.
Total operating expenses increased 19.9% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, the increase would have been 19.9%.
Cost of Revenues
Cost of revenues expenses consist of costs related to the production and servicing of our products and services and primarily includes related information technology costs, including data center, cloud service, platform and infrastructure costs; costs to acquire, produce and maintain market data information; costs of research to support and maintain existing products; costs of product management teams; costs of client service and consultant teams to support customer needs; as well as other support costs directly attributable to the cost of revenues including certain human resources, finance and legal costs.
Cost of revenues increased 19.8% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across all reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, primarily relating to higher wages and salaries, incentive compensation and benefits costs as a result of increased headcount, as well as increases in non-compensation costs reflecting higher professional fees, information technology and market data costs.
Cost of revenues increased 18.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across all reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, primarily relating to higher wages and salaries, incentive compensation and benefits costs as a result of increased headcount, as well as increases in non-compensation costs reflecting higher information technology, professional fees and market data costs.
Selling and Marketing
Selling and marketing expenses consist of costs associated with acquiring new clients or selling new products or product renewals to existing clients and primarily includes the costs of our sales and marketing teams, as well as costs incurred in other departments associated with acquiring new business, including product management, research, technology and sales operations.
Selling and marketing expenses increased 6.3% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across the All Other - Private Assets and Index reportable segments, partially offset by decreases in the Analytics and ESG and Climate reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, primarily relating to higher wages and salaries as a result of increased headcount, as well as increases in non-compensation costs reflecting higher marketing costs.
Selling and marketing expenses increased 6.6% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across the All Other - Private Assets and Index reportable segments, partially offset by decreases in the ESG and Climate and Analytics reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, primarily relating to higher incentive compensation and wages and salaries as a result of increased headcount, as well as increases in non-compensation costs reflecting higher marketing costs.
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Research and Development
R&D expenses consist of costs to develop new, or enhance existing, products and the costs to develop new or enhanced technologies and service platforms for the delivery of our products and services and primarily include the costs of development, research, product management, project management and the technology support directly associated with these activities.
R&D expenses increased 22.7% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across all reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, relating to higher wages and salaries and incentive compensation costs as a result of increased headcount, partially offset by increased capitalization of costs related to internally developed software projects.
R&D expenses increased 29.4% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across all reportable segments. The change was primarily driven by increases in compensation and benefits costs, relating to higher wages and salaries and incentive compensation costs as a result of increased headcount, partially offset by increased capitalization of costs related to internally developed software projects.
General and Administrative
G&A expenses consist of costs primarily related to finance operations, human resources, office of the CEO, legal, corporate technology, corporate development, acquisition integration, changes in the fair value of contingent consideration and certain other administrative costs that are not directly attributed to a product or service, but are instead allocated to G&A expenses.
G&A expenses increased 12.9% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across the All Other - Private Assets, and ESG and Climate reportable segments, partially offset by decreases in the Index and Analytics reportable segments. The change was primarily driven by increases in non-compensation costs primarily relating to higher occupancy costs and higher professional fees.
G&A expenses increased 21.5% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, reflecting increases across all reportable segments. The change was driven by increases in non-compensation costs, reflecting higher transaction costs related expenses due to the recent acquisitions, professional fees and information technology costs, as well as increases in compensation and benefits costs, relating to higher wages and salaries, incentive compensation and benefits costs as a result of increased headcount.
The following table presents operating expenses using compensation and non-compensation categories, rather than using activity categories, for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Compensation and benefits $ 194,809 $ 171,815 13.4 % $ 618,421 $ 527,566 17.2 %
Non-compensation expenses 82,291 68,341 20.4 % 236,919 203,930 16.2 %
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 56.9 % 121,316 77,543 56.4 %
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements
4,332 5,252 (17.5 %) 12,639 15,911 (20.6 %)
Total operating expenses $ 323,371 $ 272,130 18.8 % $ 989,295 $ 824,950 19.9 %
Compensation and Benefits
A significant portion of the incentive compensation component of operating expenses is based on the achievement of a number of financial and operating metrics. In a scenario where operating revenue growth and profitability moderate, incentive compensation would be expected to decrease accordingly.
We had 6,118 employees as of September 30, 2024, compared to 5,005 employees as of September 30, 2023, reflecting a 22.2% growth in the number of employees which is primarily related to recent acquisitions. Continued growth of our emerging market centers around the world is an important factor in our ability to manage and control the growth of our compensation and benefits costs. As of September 30, 2024, 68.5% of our employees were located in emerging market centers compared to 66.5% as of September 30, 2023.
Compensation and benefits costs increased 13.4% and 17.2%, for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, driven by an increase in wages and salaries, incentive compensation and benefits costs due to headcount growth, partially offset by
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increased capitalization of expenses related to internally developed software projects. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, compensation and benefits costs would have increased by 2.7% and increased by 6.1%, respectively, for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024.
Non-Compensation Expenses
Fixed costs constitute a significant portion of the non-compensation component of operating expenses. The discretionary non-compensation component of operating expenses could, however, be reduced in the near-term in a scenario where operating revenue growth moderates.
Non-compensation expenses increased 20.4% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, driven by higher professional fees, market data costs, information technology, marketing costs, transaction and integration costs related to recent acquisitions and recruiting costs.
Non-compensation expenses increased 16.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, driven by higher professional fees, information technology, transaction and integration costs related to recent acquisitions, market data costs and travel and entertainment costs. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and recent acquisitions, non-compensation expenses would have increased by 8.5% and increased by 6.1%, respectively, for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024.
Amortization of Intangible Assets
Amortization of intangible assets expense relates to definite-lived intangible assets arising from past acquisitions and capitalization of internally developed software projects recognized over their estimated useful lives.
Amortization of intangible assets expense increased 56.9% and 56.4% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, primarily driven by higher amortization recognized on acquired intangible assets from recent acquisitions
and higher amortization of internal use software.
Depreciation and Amortization of Property, Equipment and Leasehold Improvements
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements consists of expenses related to depreciating or amortizing the cost of computer and related equipment, leasehold improvements, software and furniture and fixtures over the estimated useful life of the assets.
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements decreased 17.5% and 20.6% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, primarily driven by lower depreciation on computer and related equipment.
Total Other Expense (Income), Net
The following table shows our other expense (income), net for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Interest income $ (5,217) $ (10,314) (49.4 %) $ (17,375) $ (31,079) (44.1 %)
Interest expense 46,688 46,902 (0.5 %) 139,995 139,725 0.2 %
Other expense (income) 2,927 (935) (413.0 %) 7,881 4,032 95.5 %
Total other expense (income), net $ 44,398 $ 35,653 24.5 % $ 130,501 $ 112,678 15.8 %
Total other expense (income), net increased 24.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by lower interest income reflecting lower average cash balances and the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations.
Total other expense (income), net increased 15.8% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by lower interest income, reflecting lower average cash balances as well as loss on extinguishment related to unamortized debt issuance costs associated with the prepayment of the Tranche A Term Loans and the entry into the Credit Agreement and the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations.
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Income Taxes
The following table shows our income tax provision and effective tax rate for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Provision for income taxes $ 76,035 $ 57,997 31.1 % $ 189,210 $ 155,974 21.3 %
Effective tax rate 21.3 % 18.3 % 16.4 % 19.1 % 17.3 % 10.4 %
The effective tax rate of 21.3% for the three months ended September 30, 2024 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain unfavorable discrete items totaling $3.6 million, primarily related to prior-year items.
The effective tax rate of 18.3% for the three months ended September 30, 2023 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain favorable discrete items totaling $3.4 million, primarily related to $3.2 million of prior-year items.
The effective tax rate of 19.1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain favorable discrete items totaling $12.4 million, related to $15.9 million of excess tax benefits recognized on share-based compensation vested during the period partially offset by $3.5 million related to prior-year items.
The effective tax rate of 17.3% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 reflects the Company's estimate of the effective tax rate for the period and was impacted by certain favorable discrete items totaling $19.8 million, related to $11.4 million of excess tax benefits recognized on share-based compensation vested during the period and $8.4 million related to prior-year items.
Net Income
The following table shows our net income for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 8.2 % $ 803,613 $ 745,212 7.8 %
As a result of the factors described above, net income increased 8.2% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, and increased 7.8% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024.
Weighted Average Shares and Common Shares Outstanding
The following table shows our weighted average shares outstanding for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic 78,499 79,116 (0.8 %) 78,925 79,580 (0.8 %)
Diluted 78,729 79,500 (1.0 %) 79,159 79,959 (1.0 %)
The following table shows our common shares outstanding for the periods indicated:
As of % Change
(in thousands) September 30,
2024
December 31,
2023
Common shares outstanding 78,371 79,091 (0.9 %)
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The decrease in weighted average shares and common shares outstanding for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 primarily reflects the impact of share repurchases made pursuant to the Company's stock repurchase program.
Adjusted EBITDA
"Adjusted EBITDA," a non-GAAP measure used by management to assess operating performance, is defined as net income before (1) provision for income taxes, (2) other expense (income), net, (3) depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements, (4) amortization of intangible assets and, at times, (5) certain other transactions or adjustments, including, when applicable, impairment related to sublease of leased property and certain acquisition-related integration and transaction costs.
"Adjusted EBITDA expenses," a non-GAAP measure used by management to assess operating performance, is defined as operating expenses less depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements and amortization of intangible assets and, at times, certain other transactions or adjustments, including, when applicable, impairment related to sublease of leased property and certain acquisition-related integration and transaction costs.
"Adjusted EBITDA margin" is defined as Adjusted EBITDA divided by operating revenues.
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA expenses and Adjusted EBITDA margin are believed to be meaningful measures for management to assess the operating performance of the Company because they adjust for significant one-time, unusual or non-recurring items as well as eliminate the accounting effects of certain capital spending and acquisitions that do not directly affect what management considers to be the Company's ongoing operating performance in the period. All companies do not calculate adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA expenses and adjusted EBITDA margin in the same way. These measures can differ significantly from company to company depending on, among other things, long-term strategic decisions regarding capital structure, the tax jurisdictions in which companies operate and capital investments. Accordingly, the Company's computation of the Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin and Adjusted EBITDA expenses measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures computed by other companies.
The following table presents non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues $ 724,705 $ 625,439 15.9 % $ 2,112,619 $ 1,838,814 14.9 %
Adjusted EBITDA expenses 274,003 239,150 14.6 % 848,389 730,490 16.1 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ 450,702 $ 386,289 16.7 % $ 1,264,230 $ 1,108,324 14.1 %
Operating margin % 55.4 % 56.5 % 53.2 % 55.1 %
Adjusted EBITDA margin % 62.2 % 61.8 % 59.8 % 60.3 %
The change in Adjusted EBITDA margin reflects changes in the rate of growth of Adjusted EBITDA expenses as compared to the rate of growth of operating revenues, driven by the factors previously described.
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Reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA and Operating Expenses to Adjusted EBITDA Expenses
The following table presents the reconciliation of net income to Adjusted EBITDA for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Net income $ 280,901 $ 259,659 8.2 % $ 803,613 $ 745,212 7.8 %
Provision for income taxes 76,035 57,997 31.1 % 189,210 155,974 21.3 %
Other expense (income), net 44,398 35,653 24.5 % 130,501 112,678 15.8 %
Operating income 401,334 353,309 13.6 % 1,123,324 1,013,864 10.8 %
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 56.9 % 121,316 77,543 56.4 %
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements
4,332 5,252 (17.5 %) 12,639 15,911 (20.6 %)
Acquisition-related integration and
transaction costs (1)
3,097 1,006 207.9 % 6,951 1,006 591.0 %
Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA $ 450,702 $ 386,289 16.7 % $ 1,264,230 $ 1,108,324 14.1 %
Index Adjusted EBITDA 314,148 277,672 13.1 % 898,898 808,424 11.2 %
Analytics Adjusted EBITDA 90,287 71,781 25.8 % 244,171 197,710 23.5 %
ESG and Climate Adjusted EBITDA 29,989 25,440 17.9 % 75,010 66,114 13.5 %
All Other - Private Assets Adjusted EBITDA 16,278 11,396 42.8 % 46,151 36,076 27.9 %
Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA $ 450,702 $ 386,289 16.7 % $ 1,264,230 $ 1,108,324 14.1 %
___________________________
(1)Represents transaction expenses and other costs directly related to the acquisition and integration of acquired businesses, including professional fees, severance expenses, regulatory filing fees and other costs, in each case that are incurred no later than 12 months after the close of the relevant acquisition.
The following table presents the reconciliation of operating expenses to Adjusted EBITDA expenses for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Total operating expenses $ 323,371 $ 272,130 18.8 % $ 989,295 $ 824,950 19.9 %
Amortization of intangible assets 41,939 26,722 56.9 % 121,316 77,543 56.4 %
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and leasehold improvements
4,332 5,252 (17.5 %) 12,639 15,911 (20.6 %)
Acquisition-related integration and
transaction costs (1)
3,097 1,006 207.9 % 6,951 1,006 591.0 %
Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA expenses $ 274,003 $ 239,150 14.6 % $ 848,389 $ 730,490 16.1 %
Index Adjusted EBITDA expenses 90,734 84,450 7.4 % 277,048 255,396 8.5 %
Analytics Adjusted EBITDA expenses 82,089 82,487 (0.5 %) 258,166 253,509 1.8 %
ESG and Climate Adjusted EBITDA expenses
53,654 47,598 12.7 % 166,372 145,201 14.6 %
All Other - Private Assets Adjusted EBITDA expenses
47,526 24,615 93.1 % 146,803 76,384 92.2 %
Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA expenses $ 274,003 $ 239,150 14.6 % $ 848,389 $ 730,490 16.1 %
___________________________
(1)Represents transaction expenses and other costs directly related to the acquisition and integration of acquired businesses, including professional fees, severance expenses, regulatory filing fees and other costs, in each case that are incurred no later than 12 months after the close of the relevant acquisition.
Segment Results
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Index Segment
The following table presents the results for the Index segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues:
Recurring subscriptions $ 223,945 $ 206,453 8.5 % $ 653,929 $ 603,845 8.3 %
Asset-based fees 168,622 141,066 19.5 % 482,162 412,354 16.9 %
Non-recurring 12,315 14,603 (15.7 %) 39,855 47,621 (16.3 %)
Operating revenues total 404,882 362,122 11.8 % 1,175,946 1,063,820 10.5 %
Adjusted EBITDA expenses 90,734 84,450 7.4 % 277,048 255,396 8.5 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ 314,148 $ 277,672 13.1 % $ 898,898 $ 808,424 11.2 %
Adjusted EBITDA margin % 77.6 % 76.7 % 76.4 % 76.0 %
Index operating revenues increased 11.8% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by strong growth in higher asset-based fees and higher recurring subscription revenue, partially offset by lower non-recurring revenues. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Index operating revenues would have increased 11.8%.
Operating revenues from recurring subscriptions increased 8.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from market cap-weighted and factor, ESG and climate Index products.
Operating revenues from asset-based fees increased 19.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth in revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes. Operating revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes increased by 19.7% and 21.1%, respectively, primarily driven by an increase in average AUM. Operating revenues from exchange traded futures and options contracts linked to MSCI indexes increased by 11.3%, driven by volume increases.
Index segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 7.4% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by higher non-compensation expenses across cost of revenues, selling and marketing, and G&A expense activity categories, partially offset by a decrease in the R&D expense activity category. The increase in non-compensation expenses was primarily driven by higher professional fees and marketing costs. The increase was also driven by higher compensation expenses in R&D, cost of revenues, and selling and marketing expense activity categories, partially offset by the G&A expense activity category. The increase in compensation expenses was driven by higher wages and salaries and incentive compensation costs. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Index segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have increased by 6.4%.
Index operating revenues increased 10.5% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by strong growth from asset-based fees and recurring subscriptions, partially offset by a decrease in non-recurring revenue. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Index operating revenues would have increased 10.7%.
Operating revenues from recurring subscriptions increased 8.3% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from market cap-weighted and factor, ESG and climate index products.
Operating revenues from asset-based fees increased 16.9% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by strong growth in revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes. Operating revenues from ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes increased by 17.9% and 19.4%, respectively, primarily driven by an increase in average AUM.
Index segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 8.5% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by higher compensation expenses across all expense activity categories. The increase reflects higher incentive compensation and wages and salaries. The increase was also driven by non-compensation expenses across the cost of revenues, G&A, and selling and marketing expense activity categories, partially offset by the R&D expense activity category. This increase was primarily due to higher professional fees and transaction fees related to the acquisition of Foxberry. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Index segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have increased by 7.5%.
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Analytics Segment
The following table presents the results for the Analytics segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues:
Recurring subscriptions $ 168,150 $ 151,269 11.2 % $ 490,829 $ 443,276 10.7 %
Non-recurring 4,226 2,999 40.9 % 11,508 7,943 44.9 %
Operating revenues total 172,376 154,268 11.7 % 502,337 451,219 11.3 %
Adjusted EBITDA expenses 82,089 82,487 (0.5 %) 258,166 253,509 1.8 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ 90,287 $ 71,781 25.8 % $ 244,171 $ 197,710 23.5 %
Adjusted EBITDA margin % 52.4 % 46.5 % 48.6 % 43.8 %
Analytics operating revenues increased 11.7% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from recurring subscriptions related to both Multi-Asset Class and Equity Analytics products, which also benefited from subscription revenue impacted by client implementations. The increase was also driven by an increase in non-recurring revenues driven by one-time deals related to both Multi-Asset Class and Equity products as well as a number of implementations which were completed in the quarter. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Fabric and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Analytics operating revenues would have increased 11.7%.
Analytics segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses decreased 0.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by lower compensation expenses across the selling and marketing and G&A expense activity categories, partially
offset by higher compensation expenses across the R&D and cost of revenues expense activity categories. The decrease was primarily driven by increased capitalization of expenses related to internally developed software projects. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Fabric and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Analytics segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have decreased 1.6%.
Analytics operating revenues increased 11.3% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from recurring subscriptions related to both Multi-Asset Class and Equity Analytics products, which also benefited from subscription revenue impacted by client implementations. The increase was also driven by an increase in non-recurring revenues driven by one-time deals related to both Multi-Asset Class and Equity products as well as a number of implementations which were completed during the year. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Fabric and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Analytics operating revenues would have increased 11.6%.
Analytics segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 1.8% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by higher non-compensation expense across cost of revenues, selling and marketing, and G&A expense activity categories, partially offset by a decrease in the R&D expense activity category. The increase reflects higher professional fees and information technology costs. The increase was also driven by higher compensation expenses across R&D, cost of revenues and G&A expense activity categories, partially offset by lower compensation expenses in the selling and marketing expense activity category. The increase was primarily driven by higher incentive compensation costs, partially offset by increased capitalization of expenses related to internally developed software projects. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Fabric and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Analytics segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have increased 0.7%.
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ESG and Climate Segment
The following table presents the results for the ESG and Climate segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues:
Recurring subscriptions $ 81,536 $ 71,744 13.6 % $ 235,954 $ 207,523 13.7 %
Non-recurring 2,107 1,294 62.8 % 5,428 3,792 43.1 %
Operating revenues total 83,643 73,038 14.5 % 241,382 211,315 14.2 %
Adjusted EBITDA expenses 53,654 47,598 12.7 % 166,372 145,201 14.6 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ 29,989 $ 25,440 17.9 % $ 75,010 $ 66,114 13.5 %
Adjusted EBITDA margin % 35.9 % 34.8 % 31.1 % 31.3 %
ESG and Climate operating revenues increased 14.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from recurring subscriptions related to Ratings, Climate and Screening products. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Trove and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, ESG and Climate operating revenues would have increased 11.0%.
ESG and Climate segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 12.7% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by higher compensation expenses across R&D, cost of revenues and G&A expense activity categories, partially offset by a decrease in the selling and marketing expense activity category. The increase reflects higher wages and salaries and incentive compensation costs. The increase is also driven by higher non-compensation expenses across all expense activity categories. The increase reflects higher professional fees. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Trove and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, ESG and Climate segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have increased 4.6%.
ESG and Climate operating revenues increased 14.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by growth from recurring subscriptions related to Ratings, Climate and Screening products. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Trove and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, ESG and Climate operating revenues would have increased 10.7%.
ESG and Climate segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 14.6% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by higher compensation expense across R&D, cost of revenues and G&A expense activity categories, partially offset by lower compensation expense in selling and marketing expense activity category. The increase reflects higher wages and salaries, incentive compensation, and benefits costs. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Trove and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, ESG and Climate segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have increased 6.1%.
All Other - Private Assets Segment
The following table presents the results for the All Other - Private Assets segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
% Change Nine Months Ended
September 30,
% Change
(in thousands) 2024 2023 2024 2023
Operating revenues:
Recurring subscriptions $ 62,991 $ 35,531 77.3 % $ 190,434 $ 111,292 71.1 %
Non-recurring 813 480 69.4 % 2,520 1,168 115.8 %
Operating revenues total 63,804 36,011 77.2 % 192,954 112,460 71.6 %
Adjusted EBITDA expenses 47,526 24,615 93.1 % 146,803 76,384 92.2 %
Adjusted EBITDA $ 16,278 $ 11,396 42.8 % $ 46,151 $ 36,076 27.9 %
Adjusted EBITDA margin % 25.5 % 31.6 % 23.9 % 32.1 %
All Other - Private Assets operating revenues increased 77.2% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by revenues attributable to the step acquisition of Burgiss. Adjusting for the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, All Other - Private Assets operating revenues would have increased 1.0%.
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All Other - Private Assets segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 93.1% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, driven by higher compensation and non-compensation expenses across all expense activity categories, primarily due to the step acquisition of Burgiss. Adjusting for the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, All Other - Private Assets segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have decreased 5.5%.
All Other - Private Assets operating revenues increased 71.6% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, primarily driven by revenues attributable to the step acquisition of Burgiss. Adjusting for the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, All Other - Private Assets operating revenues would have increased 1.7%.
All Other - Private Assets segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses increased 92.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, driven by higher compensation and non-compensation expenses across all expense activity categories, primarily due to the step acquisition of Burgiss. Adjusting for the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, All Other - Private Assets segment Adjusted EBITDA expenses would have decreased 5.1%.
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Operating Metrics
Run Rate
"Run Rate" estimates at a particular point in time the annualized value of the recurring revenues under our client license agreements ("Client Contracts") for the next 12 months, assuming all Client Contracts that come up for renewal, or reach the end of the committed subscription period, are renewed and assuming then-current currency exchange rates, subject to the adjustments and exclusions described below. For any Client Contract where fees are linked to an investment product's assets or trading volume/fees, the Run Rate calculation reflects, for ETFs, the market value on the last trading day of the period, for futures and options, the most recent quarterly volumes and/or reported exchange fees, and for other non-ETF products, the most recent client-reported assets. Run Rate does not include fees associated with "one-time" and other non-recurring transactions. In addition, we add to Run Rate the annualized fee value of recurring new sales, whether to existing or new clients, when we execute Client Contracts, even though the license start date, and associated revenue recognition, may not be effective until a later date. We remove from Run Rate the annualized fee value associated with products or services under any Client Contract when we (i) have received a notice of termination, non-renewal or an indication the client does not intend to continue their subscription during the period and (ii) have determined that such notice evidences the client's final decision to terminate or not renew the applicable products or services, even though such termination or non-renewal may not be effective until a later date.
Changes in our recurring revenues typically lag changes in Run Rate. The actual amount of recurring revenues we will realize over the following 12 months will differ from Run Rate for numerous reasons, including:
fluctuations in revenues associated with new recurring sales;
modifications, cancellations and non-renewals of existing Client Contracts, subject to specified notice requirements;
differences between the recurring license start date and the date the Client Contract is executed due to, for example, contracts with onboarding periods or fee waiver periods;
fluctuations in asset-based fees, which may result from changes in certain investment products' total expense ratios, market movements, including foreign currency exchange rates, or from investment inflows into and outflows from investment products linked to our indexes;
fluctuations in fees based on trading volumes of futures and options contracts linked to our indexes;
price changes or discounts;
revenue recognition differences under U.S. GAAP, including those related to the timing of implementation and report deliveries for certain of our products and services;
fluctuations in the number of hedge funds for which we provide investment information and risk analysis to hedge fund investors;
fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; and
the impact of acquisitions and divestitures.
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The following table presents Run Rates by reportable segment as of the dates indicated and the growth percentages over the periods indicated:
As of %
Change
(in thousands) September 30,
2024
September 30,
2023
Index:
Recurring subscriptions $ 906,803 $ 835,334 8.6 %
Asset-based fees 683,462 545,548 25.3 %
Index total 1,590,265 1,380,882 15.2 %
Analytics 691,333 639,462 8.1 %
ESG and Climate 344,015 297,297 15.7 %
All Other - Private Assets 268,577 150,749 78.2 %
Total Run Rate $ 2,894,190 $ 2,468,390 17.3 %
Recurring subscriptions total $ 2,210,728 $ 1,922,842 15.0 %
Asset-based fees 683,462 545,548 25.3 %
Total Run Rate $ 2,894,190 $ 2,468,390 17.3 %
Total Run Rate increased 17.3%, driven by a 15.0% increase from recurring subscriptions and a 25.3% increase from asset-based fees. Adjusting for the impact of recent acquisitions and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, recurring subscriptions Run Rate would have increased 8.0%.
Run Rate from Index recurring subscriptions increased 8.6%, primarily driven by growth from market cap-weighted and custom Index products and special packages. The increase reflected growth across all regions. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Index Run Rate would have increased 8.5%.
Run Rate from Index asset-based fees increased 25.3%, primarily driven by higher AUM in both ETFs linked to MSCI equity indexes and non-ETF indexed funds linked to MSCI indexes.
Run Rate from Analytics products increased 8.1%, primarily driven by growth in both Multi-Asset Class and Equity Analytics products, and reflected growth across all regions and client segments. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Fabric and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, Analytics Run Rate would have increased 7.1%.
Run Rate from ESG and Climate products increased 15.7%, driven by strong growth in Ratings, Climate and Screening products with contributions across all regions and client segments. Adjusting for the impact of the acquisition of Trove and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, ESG and Climate Run Rate would have increased 11.2%.
Run Rate from All Other - Private Assets increased 78.2%, and included $110.1 million associated with Burgiss. Excluding the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss, the growth was primarily driven by Index Intel products. Adjusting for the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, All Other - Private Assets Run Rate would have increased 2.4%.
Sales
Sales represents the annualized value of products and services clients commit to purchase from MSCI and will result in additional operating revenues. Non-recurring sales represent the actual value of the customer agreements entered into during the period and are not a component of Run Rate. New recurring subscription sales represent additional selling activities, such as new customer agreements, additions to existing agreements or increases in price that occurred during the period and are additions to Run Rate. Subscription cancellations reflect client activities during the period, such as discontinuing products and services and/or
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reductions in price, resulting in reductions to Run Rate. Net new recurring subscription sales represent the amount of new recurring subscription sales net of subscription cancellations during the period, which reflects the net impact to Run Rate during the period.
Total gross sales represent the sum of new recurring subscription sales and non-recurring sales. Total net sales represent the total gross sales net of the impact from subscription cancellations.
The following table presents our recurring subscription sales, cancellations and non-recurring sales by reportable segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended
(in thousands) September 30,
2024
September 30,
2023
% Change September 30,
2024
September 30,
2023
% Change
Index
New recurring subscription sales $ 25,271 $ 23,978 5.4 % $ 80,081 $ 80,156 (0.1 %)
Subscription cancellations (9,862) (7,402) 33.2 % (34,876) (22,617) 54.2 %
Net new recurring subscription sales $ 15,409 $ 16,576 (7.0 %) $ 45,205 $ 57,539 (21.4 %)
Non-recurring sales $ 13,883 $ 14,679 (5.4 %) $ 44,687 $ 54,365 (17.8 %)
Total gross sales $ 39,154 $ 38,657 1.3 % $ 124,768 $ 134,521 (7.3 %)
Total Index net sales $ 29,292 $ 31,255 (6.3 %) $ 89,892 $ 111,904 (19.7 %)
Analytics
New recurring subscription sales $ 20,780 $ 18,787 10.6 % $ 56,137 $ 50,751 10.6 %
Subscription cancellations (10,307) (7,543) 36.6 % (28,001) (24,094) 16.2 %
Net new recurring subscription sales $ 10,473 $ 11,244 (6.9 %) $ 28,136 $ 26,657 5.5 %
Non-recurring sales $ 7,293 $ 3,206 127.5 % $ 13,812 $ 8,734 58.1 %
Total gross sales $ 28,073 $ 21,993 27.6 % $ 69,949 $ 59,485 17.6 %
Total Analytics net sales $ 17,766 $ 14,450 22.9 % $ 41,948 $ 35,391 18.5 %
ESG and Climate
New recurring subscription sales $ 9,333 $ 12,124 (23.0 %) $ 39,361 $ 38,497 2.2 %
Subscription cancellations (5,575) (2,639) 111.3 % (17,496) (7,331) 138.7 %
Net new recurring subscription sales $ 3,758 $ 9,485 (60.4 %) $ 21,865 $ 31,166 (29.8 %)
Non-recurring sales $ 2,345 $ 1,532 53.1 % $ 6,852 $ 4,066 68.5 %
Total gross sales $ 11,678 $ 13,656 (14.5 %) $ 46,213 $ 42,563 8.6 %
Total ESG and Climate net sales $ 6,103 $ 11,017 (44.6 %) $ 28,717 $ 35,232 (18.5 %)
All Other - Private Assets
New recurring subscription sales $ 9,959 $ 4,788 108.0 % $ 29,877 $ 14,746 102.6 %
Subscription cancellations (4,610) (3,153) 46.2 % (15,112) (8,634) 75.0 %
Net new recurring subscription sales $ 5,349 $ 1,635 227.2 % $ 14,765 $ 6,112 141.6 %
Non-recurring sales $ 520 $ 262 98.5 % $ 2,361 $ 1,069 120.9 %
Total gross sales $ 10,479 $ 5,050 107.5 % $ 32,238 $ 15,815 103.8 %
Total All Other - Private Assets net sales $ 5,869 $ 1,897 209.4 % $ 17,126 $ 7,181 138.5 %
Consolidated
New recurring subscription sales $ 65,343 $ 59,677 9.5 % $ 205,456 $ 184,150 11.6 %
Subscription cancellations (30,354) (20,737) 46.4 % (95,485) (62,676) 52.3 %
Net new recurring subscription sales $ 34,989 $ 38,940 (10.1 %) $ 109,971 $ 121,474 (9.5 %)
Non-recurring sales $ 24,041 $ 19,679 22.2 % $ 67,712 $ 68,234 (0.8 %)
Total gross sales $ 89,384 $ 79,356 12.6 % $ 273,168 $ 252,384 8.2 %
Total net sales $ 59,030 $ 58,619 0.7 % $ 177,683 $ 189,708 (6.3 %)
A significant portion of MSCI's operating revenues are derived from subscriptions or licenses of products and services, which are provided over contractually-agreed periods of time that are subject to renewal or cancellation at the end of current contract terms.
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Retention Rate
The following table presents our Retention Rate by reportable segment for the periods indicated:
Three Months Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
2024 2023 2024 2023
Index(1)
95.4% 96.2% 94.6% 96.1%
Analytics(1)
93.8% 95.1% 94.4% 94.8%
ESG and Climate(1)
93.0% 96.0% 92.7% 96.3%
All Other - Private Assets(1)
92.7% 91.3% 92.0% 92.1%
Total(1)
94.2% 95.4% 93.9% 95.4%
___________________________
(1)Retention rate for Index excluding the impact of the acquisition of Foxberry was 95.5% and 94.6% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively. Retention rate for Analytics excluding the impact of the acquisition of Fabric was 93.8% and 94.4% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively. Retention rate for ESG and Climate excluding the impact of the acquisition of Trove was 93.4% and 92.9% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively. Retention rate for All Other - Private Assets excluding the impact of the step acquisition of Burgiss was 92.2% and 90.7% for the three and nine months and year ended September 30, 2024, respectively. Total retention rate excluding the impact of the acquisitions of Foxberry, Fabric, Trove, and Burgiss was 94.4% and 94.0% for three and nine months and year ended September 30, 2024, respectively.
Retention Rate is an important metric because subscription cancellations decrease our Run Rate and ultimately our future operating revenues over time. The annual Retention Rate represents the retained subscription Run Rate (subscription Run Rate at the beginning of the fiscal year less actual cancels during the year) as a percentage of the subscription Run Rate at the beginning of the fiscal year.
The Retention Rate for a non-annual period is calculated by annualizing the cancellations for which we have received a notice of termination or for which we believe there is an intention not to renew or discontinue the subscription during the non-annual period, and we believe that such notice or intention evidences the client's final decision to terminate or not renew the applicable agreement, even though such termination or non-renewal may not be effective until a later date. This annualized cancellation figure is then divided by the subscription Run Rate at the beginning of the fiscal year to calculate a cancellation rate. This cancellation rate is then subtracted from 100% to derive the annualized Retention Rate for the period.
Retention Rate is computed by operating segment on a product/service-by-product/service basis. In general, if a client reduces the number of products or services to which it subscribes within a segment, or switches between products or services within a segment, we treat it as a cancellation for purposes of calculating our Retention Rate except in the case of a product or service switch that management considers to be a replacement product or service. In those replacement cases, only the net change to the client subscription, if a decrease, is reported as a cancel. In the Analytics and the ESG and Climate operating segments, substantially all product or service switches are treated as replacement products or services and netted in this manner, while in our Index and Real Assets operating segments, product or service switches that are treated as replacement products or services and receive netting treatment occur only in certain limited instances. In addition, we treat any reduction in fees resulting from a down-sell of the same product or service as a cancellation to the extent of the reduction. We do not calculate Retention Rate for that portion of our Run Rate attributable to assets in index-linked investment products or futures and options contracts, in each case, linked to our indexes.
Retention Rate is generally higher during the first three quarters and lower in the fourth quarter, as the fourth quarter is traditionally the largest renewal period in the year.
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Liquidity and Capital Resources
We require capital to fund ongoing operations, internal growth initiatives and acquisitions. Our primary sources of liquidity are cash flows generated from our operations, existing cash and cash equivalents and credit capacity under our existing credit facility. In addition, we believe we have access to additional funding in the public and private markets. We intend to use these sources of liquidity to, among other things, service our existing and future debt obligations, fund our working capital requirements for capital expenditures, investments, acquisitions and dividend payments, and make repurchases of our common stock. In connection with our business strategy, we regularly evaluate acquisition and strategic partnership opportunities. We believe our liquidity, along with other financing alternatives, will provide the necessary capital to fund these transactions and achieve our planned growth.
Senior Notes and Credit Agreement
As of September 30, 2024, we had an aggregate of $4,200.0 million in Senior Notes outstanding. In addition, under the Credit Agreement, we had as of September 30, 2024 an aggregate of $311.9 million in outstanding borrowings under the revolving credit facility. See Note 8, "Debt" and Note 13, "Subsequent Events", of the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) included herein for additional information on our outstanding indebtedness and revolving credit facility.
On January 26, 2024, we entered into a Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement") amending and restating in its entirety the Prior Credit Agreement. The Credit Agreement makes available an aggregate of $1,250.0 million of revolving loan commitments under the Revolving Credit Facility, which may be drawn until January 26, 2029. The Revolving Credit Facility under the Credit Agreement was drawn at closing in an amount sufficient to prepay all term loans outstanding under the TLA Facility under the Prior Credit Agreement. The obligations under the Credit Agreement are general unsecured obligations of the Company.
The Senior Notes and the Prior Credit Agreement were previously fully and unconditionally, and jointly and severally, guaranteed by our direct or indirect wholly owned domestic subsidiaries that account for more than 5% of our and our subsidiaries' consolidated assets, other than certain excluded subsidiaries (the "subsidiary guarantors"). Upon the closing of the Credit Agreement on January 26, 2024, the subsidiary guarantors' were released from their guarantees under the Prior Credit Agreement and the indentures governing our Senior Notes (the "Indentures").
The Indentures among us and Computershare, National Association, as trustee and successor to Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, contain covenants that limit our and our subsidiaries' ability to, among other things, incur liens, enter into sale/leaseback transactions and consolidate, merge or sell all or substantially all of our assets, and that limit the ability of our subsidiaries to incur certain indebtedness. The Credit Agreement also contains covenants that limit our and our subsidiaries' ability to, among other things, incur liens, enter into sale/leaseback transactions and consolidate, merge or sell all or substantially all of our assets, and that limit the ability of our subsidiaries to incur certain indebtedness.
The Credit Agreement and the Indentures also contain customary events of default, including those relating to non-payment, breach of representations, warranties or covenants, cross-default and cross-acceleration, and bankruptcy and insolvency events, and, in the case of the Credit Agreement, invalidity or impairment of loan documentation, change of control and customary ERISA defaults in addition to the foregoing. None of the restrictions detailed above are expected to impact our ability to effectively operate the business.
The Credit Agreement also requires us and our subsidiaries to achieve financial and operating results sufficient to maintain compliance with the following financial ratios on a consolidated basis through the termination of the Credit Agreement: (1) the maximum Consolidated Leverage Ratio (as defined in the Credit Agreement) measured quarterly on a rolling four-quarter basis not to exceed 4.25:1.00 (or 4.50:1.00 for four fiscal quarters following a material acquisition) and (2) the minimum Consolidated Interest Coverage Ratio (as defined in the Credit Agreement) measured quarterly on a rolling four-quarter basis of at least 4.00:1.00. As of September 30, 2024, our Consolidated Leverage Ratio was 2.39:1.00 and our Consolidated Interest Coverage Ratio was 9.79:1.00.
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Share Repurchases
The following table provides information with respect to repurchases of the Company's common stock pursuant to open market repurchases:
Nine months ended
(in thousands except per share data)
Average
Price
Paid Per
Share
Total
Number of
Shares
Repurchased
Dollar
Value of
Shares
Repurchased(1)
September 30, 2024 $ 500.52 880 $ 440,265
September 30, 2023 $ 468.26 980 $ 458,721
___________________________
(1)The values in this column exclude the 1% excise tax incurred on share repurchases. Any excise tax incurred is recognized as part of the cost of the shares acquired in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Shareholders' Equity (Deficit).
As of September 30, 2024, there was $405.4 million of available authorization remaining under the 2022 Repurchase Program. This authorization may be modified, suspended or terminated by the Board of Directors at any time without prior notice.
Cash Dividends
On October 28, 2024, the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.60 per share for the three months ending December 31, 2024. The fourth quarter 2024 dividend is payable on November 29, 2024 to shareholders of record as of the close of trading on November 15, 2024.
Cash Flows
The following table presents the Company's cash and cash equivalents, including restricted cash, as of the dates indicated:
As of
(in thousands) September 30,
2024
December 31,
2023
Cash and cash equivalents (includes restricted cash of $3,909 and
$3,878 at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)
$ 500,979 $ 461,693
We typically seek to maintain minimum cash balances globally of approximately $225.0 million to $275.0 million for general operating purposes. As of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, $244.0 million and $285.2 million, respectively, of the Company's cash and cash equivalents were held by foreign subsidiaries. Repatriation of some foreign cash may be subject to certain withholding taxes in local jurisdictions and other distribution restrictions. We believe the global cash and cash equivalent balances that are maintained will be available to meet our global needs whether for general corporate purposes or other needs, including acquisitions or expansion of our products.
We believe that global cash flows from operations, together with existing cash and cash equivalents and funds available under our existing revolving credit facility and our ability to access bank debt, private debt and the capital markets for additional funds, will continue to be sufficient to fund our global operating activities and cash commitments for investing and financing activities, such as material capital expenditures and share repurchases, for at least the next 12 months and for the foreseeable future thereafter. In addition, we expect that foreign cash flows from operations, together with existing cash and cash equivalents, will continue to be sufficient to fund our foreign operating activities and cash commitments for investing activities, such as material capital expenditures, for at least the next 12 months and for the foreseeable future thereafter.
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Net Cash Provided by (Used In) Operating, Investing and Financing Activities
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
(in thousands) 2024 2023
Net cash provided by operating activities $ 1,070,994 $ 847,076
Net cash (used in) investing activities (107,522) (69,411)
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities (926,125) (842,364)
Effect of exchange rate changes 1,939 (313)
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash
$ 39,286 $ (65,012)
Cash Flows From Operating Activities
Cash flows from operating activities consist of net income adjusted for certain non-cash items and changes in assets and liabilities. The year-over-year change was primarily driven by higher cash collections from customers and lower cash paid for income taxes, partially offset by higher payments for cash expenses.
Our primary uses of cash from operating activities are for the payment of cash compensation expenses, income taxes, interest expenses, technology costs, professional fees, market data costs and office rent. Historically, the payment of cash for compensation and benefits is at its highest level in the first quarter when we pay discretionary employee compensation related to the previous fiscal year.
Cash Flows From Investing Activities
The year-over-year change was primarily driven by the acquisitions of Fabric and Foxberry and higher capitalized software development costs.
Cash Flows From Financing Activities
The year-over-year change was primarily driven by the repayment of outstanding balances under our Revolving Credit Facility and higher dividend payments.
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
Foreign Currency Risk
We are subject to foreign currency exchange fluctuation risk. Exchange rate movements can impact the U.S. dollar-reported value of our revenues, expenses, assets and liabilities denominated in non-U.S. dollar currencies or where the currency of such items is different than the functional currency of the entity where these items were recorded.
We generally invoice our clients in U.S. dollars; however, we invoice a portion of our clients in Euros, British pounds sterling, Japanese yen and a limited number of other non-U.S. dollar currencies. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, 16.6% and 17.0%, respectively, of our revenues are subject to foreign currency exchange rate risk and primarily included clients billed in foreign currency as well as U.S. dollar exposures on non-U.S. dollar foreign operating entities. Of the 16.6% of non-U.S. dollar exposure for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, 42.2% was in Euros, 32.9% was in British pounds sterling and 17.7% was in Japanese yen. Of the 17.0% of non-U.S. dollar exposure for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, 41.7% was in Euros, 32.5% was in British pounds sterling and 17.6% was in Japanese yen.
Revenues from asset-based fees represented 22.8% and 22.4% of operating revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively. While a substantial portion of our asset-based fees are invoiced in U.S. dollars, the fees are based on the assets in investment products, of which approximately three-fifths are invested in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Accordingly, declines in such other currencies against the U.S. dollar will decrease the fees payable to us under such licenses. In addition, declines in such currencies against the U.S. dollar could impact the attractiveness of such investment products resulting in net fund outflows, which would further reduce the fees payable under such licenses.
We are exposed to additional foreign currency risk in certain of our operating costs. Approximately 41.8% and 43.4% of our operating expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, were denominated in foreign currencies, the significant majority of which were denominated in British pounds sterling, Indian rupees, Euros, Hungarian forints, Mexican pesos and Swiss francs.
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We have certain monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than local functional amounts, and when these balances are remeasured into their local functional currency, either a gain or a loss results from the change of the value of the functional currency as compared to the originating currencies. We manage foreign currency exchange rate risk, in part, through the use of derivative financial instruments comprised principally of forward contracts on foreign currency which are not designated as hedging instruments for accounting purposes. The objective of the derivative instruments is to minimize the impact on the income statement of the volatility of amounts denominated in certain foreign currencies. We recognized total foreign currency exchange losses of $5.0 million and $2.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures
Our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have evaluated our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, (the "Exchange Act"), as of the end of the period covered by this report, and have concluded that these disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time specified in the SEC's rules and forms. These disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports we file or submit under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) during the three months ended September 30, 2024 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
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PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1. Legal Proceedings
Various lawsuits, arbitrations, claims, government inquiries, requests for information, regulatory investigations, examinations, inspections, other proceedings and subpoenas have been or may be instituted or asserted against the Company in the ordinary course of business. While the potential losses could be substantial, due to uncertainties surrounding the potential outcomes, management cannot currently reasonably estimate the possible loss or range of loss that may arise from these matters. Consequently, it is possible that MSCI's business, operating results, financial condition or cash flows in a particular period could be materially affected by these matters. However, based on facts currently available, we believe that the disposition of matters that are currently pending or asserted will not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material effect on MSCI's business, operating results, financial condition or cash flows.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
For a discussion of the risk factors affecting the Company, see "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.
There have been no material changes to the risk factors and uncertainties known to the Company and disclosed in the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, that, if they were to materialize or occur, would, individually or in the aggregate, have a material effect on MSCI's business, operating results, financial condition or cash flows.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities, Use of Proceeds and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
There were no unregistered sales of equity securities during the three months ended September 30, 2024.
The table below presents information with respect to purchases made by or on behalf of the Company of its shares of common stock during the three months ended September 30, 2024.
Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Period
Total
Number of
Shares
Purchased(1)
Average Price
Paid
Per Share(2)
Total
Number of
Shares
Purchased
As Part of
Publicly
Announced
Plans
or Programs
Approximate
Dollar
Value of Shares
that May Yet
Be
Purchased
Under
the Plans or
Programs(3)
July 1, 2024 - July 31, 2024 151,620 $ 504.62 151,361 $ 527,786,000
August 1, 2024 - August 31, 2024 210,822 $ 533.04 210,269 $ 415,710,000
September 1, 2024 - September 30, 2024 19,355 $ 549.16 18,767 $ 405,412,000
Total 381,797 $ 522.57 380,397 $ 405,412,000
___________________________
(1)Includes, when applicable, (i) shares purchased by the Company on the open market under the stock repurchase program; (ii) shares withheld to satisfy tax withholding obligations on behalf of employees that occur upon vesting and delivery of outstanding shares underlying restricted stock units; and (iii) shares held in treasury under the MSCI Inc. Non-Employee Directors Deferral Plan. The value of shares withheld to satisfy tax withholding obligations was determined using the fair market value of the Company's common stock on the date of withholding, using a valuation methodology established by the Company.
(2)Excludes 1% excise tax incurred on share repurchases.
(3)See Note 10, "Shareholders' Equity (Deficit)," of the Notes to the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements included herein for further information regarding our stock repurchase program.
Item 5. Other Information
During the three months ended September 30, 2024, none of the Company's directors or officers, as defined in Section 16 of the Exchange Act, adopted or terminated a "Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement" or a "non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement," as each term is defined in Item 408(a) of Regulation S-K of the Exchange Act.
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Item 6. Exhibits
EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit
Number
Description
3.1
3.2
10.1
MSCI Inc. Executive Committee Stock Ownership Guidelines
* 31.1
Rule 13a-14(a) Certification of the Chief Executive Officer
* 31.2
Rule 13a-14(a) Certification of the Chief Financial Officer
** 32.1
Section 1350 Certification of the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer
* 101.INS Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document.
* 101.SCH Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
* 101.CAL Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
* 101.LAB Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document
* 101.PRE Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document
* 101.DEF Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
* 104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101)
___________________________
*Filed herewith.
**Furnished herewith.
† Indicates a management compensation plan, contract or arrangement.
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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.
Dated: October 31, 2024
MSCI INC.
(Registrant)
By: /s/ Andrew C. Wiechmann
Andrew C. Wiechmann
Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial Officer)
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