Nasdaq Q2 2026: net revenue up 14.9%, EPS $0.89, ARR $3.26 billion
Nasdaq's second quarter of 2026 was a record-setting one: net revenue rose 14.9% to $1.50 billion, non-GAAP EPS climbed 25.9% to $1.07, and the company returned $530 million to shareholders. The catch is that reported gross margin slipped to 59.2% as pass-through transaction costs grew faster than trading revenue, and GAAP EPS of $0.89 lagged the $1.0027 consensus.
1 · Expected vs. Actual
Free preview belowGAAP diluted EPS was $0.89, up from $0.78, while non-GAAP diluted EPS was $1.07, up 25.9% from $0.85. Most of the gap is $121 million of amortization on acquired intangible assets, which Nasdaq adds back, plus $14 million of restructuring and $6 million of legal accruals. Against the $1.0027 consensus, non-GAAP is a clear beat and GAAP is a miss — most investors will judge on the former, which is exactly the tension in this report.
Net revenue — what is left after transaction-based expenses — was $1.50 billion, 14.9% above the $1.306 billion of a year ago, and management says growth was 15% on a reported and adjusted basis. Total revenue before those pass-through costs was $2.532 billion, up 20.5% from $2.101 billion, so the growth rate you quote depends on which line you read. The $2.532 billion figure is gross; the $1.50 billion figure is the one the company guides and reports margins against.
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Figures on this page come from the company's original SEC filings. The analysis is generated automatically and checked against validation rules, but may still contain errors or omissions. Not investment advice. · Generated 2026-09-17
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