Fiserv Inc. Fiserv (FISV) reported its first-quarter results on Tuesday, and the numbers tell a story of a company that's beating profit expectations but struggling to grow its top line. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $1.79, well above the analyst consensus of $1.57. But that's down from $2.14 a year ago, so the beat is relative.
Revenue was the bigger concern. The company posted $4.675 billion in sales, missing the $4.729 billion analysts were looking for and down from $4.789 billion in the same quarter last year. Organic revenue dropped 4%, with the Merchant Solutions segment falling 1% and Financial Solutions sliding 6%. The quarter also included a net $254 million income tax benefit, which helped the bottom line but doesn't change the revenue picture.
Margins are under pressure too. Adjusted operating margin came in at 29.7%, a sharp decline from 37.8% in Q1 2025. That's a big drop, and it shows up in the cash flow numbers: free cash flow was $259 million, down from $371 million a year ago. The company still has $2.250 billion in cash on hand and bought back 3.3 million shares for $200 million during the quarter.
CEO Mike Lyons said the company is in "execution mode" and focused on the "One Fiserv Action Plan." He added, "We look forward to providing more details on our strategy and medium-term financial outlook at our May 14 Investor Day." For now, Fiserv affirmed its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $8 to $8.30, which brackets the $8.10 analyst estimate.
Investors weren't thrilled. Shares were down 9.19% in premarket trading Tuesday at $57.03. The market is clearly focused on the revenue miss and margin compression, not the EPS beat. The upcoming Investor Day will be a key moment for Fiserv to convince investors that the "One Fiserv" plan can turn things around.
