Equifax NYSE: EFX shareholders reelected the company’s 10 director nominees and approved several management-backed proposals at the company’s 2026 annual meeting, according to preliminary voting results announced during the meeting.
Mark Feidler, chairman of the board, called the meeting to order in a hybrid format, with in-person attendees gathered at the Ritz-Carlton in St. Louis, Missouri, and other shareholders participating through a live webcast. Corporate Secretary Lisa Stockard said the inspector of election had certified that a quorum was present.
Shareholders Approve Board-Backed Measures
Feidler said shareholders were asked to vote on five proposals: the election of 10 directors for one-year terms, an advisory vote on named executive officer compensation, ratification of Ernst & Young as independent auditor for 2026, an advisory vote to lower the ownership threshold to call a special meeting of shareholders to 25%, and a shareholder proposal to lower that threshold to 10%.
The board recommended votes in favor of the director nominees and the first three management proposals, including the 25% special meeting threshold, and recommended voting against the shareholder proposal calling for a 10% threshold.
Stockard reported that, based on preliminary results, all 10 director nominees were reelected, the advisory vote on named executive officer compensation received majority support, Ernst & Young’s appointment was ratified, and the proposal to lower the special meeting threshold to 25% received majority support. The shareholder proposal seeking a 10% threshold did not receive majority support. Feidler said final voting results would be filed with the SEC.
Shareholder Proposal Focused on Special Meeting Rights
John Chevedden, the shareholder proponent, presented the proposal seeking to allow holders of a combined 10% of outstanding common stock to call a special shareholder meeting. Chevedden argued that the 25% threshold supported by the company was “not attainable” and said Equifax’s management proposal included an additional requirement that shares must have been held continuously for a full year to count toward the threshold.
Chevedden urged shareholders to support proposal five, calling it “the only proposal on the ballot today that is for an attainable shareholder right to call for a special shareholder meeting.”
CEO Highlights Record 2025 Revenue
After the formal business portion of the meeting, CEO Mark Begor provided a presentation on the company’s performance. Begor called 2025 “a really record year” and said Equifax generated record revenue of $6.1 billion, marking the company’s first year above $6 billion in revenue.
Begor said growth was broad-based across the company and that both the mortgage and diversified businesses performed well despite a challenging mortgage market in 2025. He cited revenue of more than $2.5 billion for Workforce Solutions, up 6%; $2.078 billion for the U.S. Information Solutions business, up 10%; and $1.4 billion for the international business, up 6%. He said the company’s momentum continued in the first quarter of 2026.
Begor also emphasized the company’s technology investments, saying Equifax has invested an incremental $3 billion in its technology stack over more than five years. He described Equifax as “the only cloud-native data analytics company in our space,” and said the company views that position as a competitive advantage in delivering customer solutions, stability and innovation.
AI and Innovation Remain Key Priorities
Begor said new product development remains central to the company’s strategy. He pointed to Equifax’s Vitality Index, which measures the percentage of revenue from products launched in the past three years. The company reached a record 15% Vitality Index in 2025 and reported 17% in the first quarter of 2026, according to Begor. He also said Equifax delivered a record 188 new products last year.
Artificial intelligence was another major focus of Begor’s remarks. He described three AI initiatives: using AI to deliver higher-performing scores, models and products for customers; deploying AI internally through an initiative called AI 4 EFX; and applying AI to operations through a program called E3.
Begor said Equifax added 40 AI patents in 2025 to a portfolio of 400 “explainable AI” patents and added another 10 in the first quarter. He also referenced a three-year, $75 million productivity program driven by AI in operations, which he said is contributing to margin expansion in 2026.
Capital Allocation and Shareholder Returns
Begor reiterated the company’s long-term framework, including a target of 7% to 10% organic revenue growth, one to two points of annual revenue growth from bolt-on mergers and acquisitions, and annual margin expansion of 50 basis points. For 2026, he said Equifax has guided investors to 75 basis points of margin expansion.
He also discussed the company’s capital allocation plan, introduced in April 2025, which includes growing the dividend in line with earnings growth and returning cash to shareholders through a $3 billion, three-year share repurchase program. Begor said Equifax repurchased $500 million of shares in the fourth quarter of 2025 and about $240 million of shares in the first quarter of 2026.
Begor said Equifax expects to invest up to $500 million annually in capital expenditures over the long term, primarily to support innovation and new products, and to allocate roughly $500 million to $700 million annually to bolt-on M&A. He said the company expects to generate about $1 billion a year in excess free cash flow that can be returned to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Begor closed by saying Equifax plays an important role in consumers’ and small businesses’ financial lives, including in areas such as home financing, auto loans, credit cards, employment verification, renting apartments and social services. He also said the company’s foundation delivered $2.6 million to charitable organizations in 2025, including more than $800,000 for community financial education-oriented organizations.
About Equifax NYSE: EFX
Equifax Inc NYSE: EFX is a global data, analytics and technology company that specializes in consumer and commercial credit reporting, decisioning tools and identity solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax is one of the three major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and provides credit information and related services to lenders, employers, governments and consumers worldwide.
The company's offerings include consumer credit reports and scores, credit monitoring and identity protection services, and a range of business-oriented products for risk management, fraud detection and compliance.
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.
Before you consider Equifax, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Equifax wasn't on the list.
While Equifax currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Learn the basics of options trading and how to use them to boost returns and manage risk with this free report from MarketBeat. Click the link below to get your free copy.
Get This Free Report
