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CME Group reported third-quarter revenue of $1.7 billion, up 13.0% from $1.5 billion a year earlier. Revenue beat the consensus by 1.43%, although both the reported and estimated figures rounded to $1.7 billion. Adjusted earnings per share were $3.02, above the consensus of $2.98.
The company attributed higher trading volumes to market volatility, including shifts in interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty. Its filing said interest rate, equity index, foreign exchange, energy and metals volumes increased from a year earlier, while cryptocurrency contract volumes fell. The filing also said a higher proportion of lower-priced micro contracts and member trading reduced the average rate per contract.
CME reported an operating margin of 65.7%, compared with 63.3% a year earlier, while diluted earnings per share rose to $2.89 from $2.49. Free cash flow increased to $1.1 billion from $949.7 million. The filing attributed higher operating expenses in part to license fees on equity products and technology support for the cloud transformation.
| Q3 FY2026 | Q3 FY2025 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.7 billion | $1.5 billion | 13.0% |
| Diluted EPS | $2.89 | $2.49 | 16.1% |
| Gross margin | 100.0% | 100.0% | 0.0 percentage points |
| Operating margin | 65.7% | 63.3% | 2.4 percentage points |
| Free cash flow | $1.1 billion | $949.7 million | 12.7% |
| Against the consensus | Reported | Consensus | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS | $3.02 | $2.98 | Beat by 1.34% |
| Revenue | $1.7 billion | $1.7 billion | Beat by 1.43% |
Adjusted EPS is the figure the consensus estimates, not the GAAP EPS above.
What management said on the call
CEO Terry Duffy said customers traded an average of 29.4 million contracts per day in the third quarter, up 16% from a year earlier, with double-digit growth across all six asset classes. International average daily volume reached 9 million contracts, up 22%. He said customers saved an average of over $100 billion a day in margin during the quarter.
CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick said market-data revenue rose 20% to $243 million. Asked about its drivers, head of retail strategy Julie Winkler attributed demand to professional subscribers, retail and simulated-trading platforms, data feeds, Term SOFR, pricing adjustments and policy changes. Winkler said the company does not share specific expectations for future market-data growth.
On pricing, Fitzpatrick said October changes affected crypto, grains, interest-rate tiers and micro equities. She said CME is moving away from an annual pricing increase toward changes spread throughout the year as markets and the value CME provides change. She also said adjusted operating margin was 69.4% in the quarter.
Duffy said CME opened its Dallas disaster recovery facility for customer testing as part of its cloud migration. He said the company expects to begin migrating markets in late 2027 and no longer considers an interim move of livestock markets to Dallas necessary. CME also launched single-stock and e-nano equity index futures during the quarter, he said.
Asked about capital allocation, Fitzpatrick said CME had completed redeploying the Astra funds through repurchases and would remain selective about acquisitions, looking for additional clients, products or customer capital efficiencies. As the fourth quarter began, she said volume was 17% ahead of the prior-year fourth quarter.
Guidance
CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick said CME is moving away from an annual pricing increase. She expects the October changes to affect annualized clearing and transaction fees by somewhere in the range of half to 1%.
| Metric | For | Guide | Previous guide | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customers, Single Stock Futures | Q4 FY2026 | CME Group expects additional futures commission merchants to come live for single stock futures in Q4 FY2026. | — | — |