2.06% Dividend Yield, 26 Years of Dividend Hikes – A Sticky Financial Data Engine Selling the Markets the Tools to Think
This is the kind of company that lives inside the workflows of analysts, bankers, and portfolio managers, which is exactly why it tends to compound so quietly. It sells subscription-based data, analytics, and software that become part of daily decision-making, so once a client embeds the platform into research, trading, or wealth workflows, replacing it is annoying enough to stick around. That makes the business feel less like a software fad and more like a toll road on financial attention, with recurring contracts doing the heavy lifting in the background.
FactSet Research Systems (FDS)
Financial Score: 99 / 99
Quick Tip
To keep your portfolio strong, stay on top of the financials for each company you hold. Solid companies mean better returns, so be sure to check in on their quarterly and annual numbers.Interesting stocks usually score 80+ on the Financial Scale, with top players hitting 90+. If that score dips below 80, it might be a good time to consider cutting ties before things take a turn.FactSet Research Systems (FDS) is a Connecticut-based financial data and analytics company that provides portfolio data, research tools, and enterprise solutions to buy-side firms, wealth managers, and other market professionals around the world. Its products sit across the investment workflow, from idea generation and screening to portfolio construction and reporting, which is why its Annual Subscription Value matters so much as a proxy for future revenue. Over time it has evolved from a niche market-data shop into a broad platform business with clients in the Americas, EMEA, and Asia Pacific.
Dividend engine: slow, steady, and very deliberate
FactSet pays $4.64 per share annually, which works out to a 2.06% yield with a 29.84% payout ratio, so the dividend is backed by plenty of retained earnings. The company has raised the payout for 26 straight years, and the 5-year dividend growth rate of +45.00% shows management has still been willing to grow the check even while investing hard in the platform. That combination is unusually clean for a software-like business: recurring revenue supports the dividend, low payout leaves room for flexibility, and the streak tells you the board likes consistency almost as much as its clients do. This is not a loud dividend story, but it is a very disciplined one.
Q2 fiscal 2026: growth held up, even if margins were a little noisy
For the second quarter of fiscal 2026, reported March 31, 2026, FactSet generated GAAP revenues of $611.0 million, up 7.1% year over year, with organic revenue growth of 6.8% and organic ASV of $2.45 billion, up 6.7%. GAAP diluted EPS came in at $3.59, while adjusted diluted EPS was $4.46, and net cash from operating activities was $211.7 million with free cash flow of $185.7 million. The margin line looked a little softer than the top line, but the important part is that the subscription engine kept expanding and the company still had enough cash generation to support dividends, buybacks, and platform reinvestment without stretching the balance sheet.
Growth levers: clients, users, and AI tools
FactSet’s latest quarter showed 9,101 clients and 241,352 users, up 98 clients and 1,489 users over the prior three months, which is exactly the sort of detail that tells you the platform is still winning seats at the table. Client retention was 91% and ASV retention stayed above 95%, which is the financial-data equivalent of having a very polite moat: once a firm plugs into the workflow, it does not casually wander off. The company is also leaning into AI-driven workflow improvements and enterprise integrations, while management raised full-year FY2026 guidance for ASV growth and EPS, signaling that the next phase of growth is still coming from deeper product adoption rather than just price increases.
How a data terminal business got so sticky
FactSet’s real magic is not that it owns a database. Plenty of companies own databases. The trick is that it sells a living workflow, where the data, analytics, and reporting layers are all stitched together tightly enough that leaving would create real friction for the customer. That is why this business can keep raising prices, adding modules, and expanding its user count without looking like it is forcing the issue. The product becomes the habit, the habit becomes the budget line, and the budget line becomes recurring revenue. In financial services, that is about as close to elegant as infrastructure gets.
Final Take – A premium compounding machine with a modest yield
FactSet gives investors a 2.06% yield, $4.64 annual dividend, a 29.84% payout ratio, 26 years of dividend hikes, and +45.00% five-year dividend growth, all supported by a subscription model with high retention and global client reach. Q2 fiscal 2026 showed $611.0 million in revenue, $3.59 GAAP EPS, $4.46 adjusted EPS, and continued client and user growth, while ASV and retention figures suggest the pipeline is still healthy. Financial Score: 99. That is elite territory: the dividend is well covered, the moat is real, and the business has the rare combination of recurring revenue, pricing power, and workflow stickiness that lets it act like a compounding machine rather than just a data vendor.
Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. ― Warren Buffett.
Learn the MaxDividends Way
Start Here
🔑 Explore the Premium Hub (exclusive — upgrade to unlock)
Guides & Step-by-Step
Deep Insights
📖 I ❤️ Dividends: Why I Believe Dividend Investing Is the Best Strategy | E-Book
How Effective is the MaxDividends Strategy for Building Growing Passive Income
Help & Support
Got a question about dividends? Ask Max, your AI Dividend Assistant!
Didn’t get the answer you need? Reach out: max@maxdividends.app or team@maxdividends.app — we’ll help you out.