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Red Violet, Inc.: Q3 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q3 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 5 November 2026: press release, call transcript. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Revenue rose 20% to record: Revenue reached $27.8 million, up 20% on the prior year, and the company reported record revenue and record operating cash flow for the quarter. Source
  • Trailing revenue passed $100 million: Trailing twelve-month revenue passed $100 million for the first time, according to the press release headline results. Source
  • Real Estate softness in IDI: IDI's Real Estate business declined at a high single-digit rate year over year, partly offset within the vertical by FOREWARN double-digit revenue growth. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin at 40%: Adjusted EBITDA rose 22% to $11.0 million. Management described the quarter as another Rule of 60 result, combining 20% revenue growth with a 40% margin. Source
  • Contractual revenue share rose: The contractual share of total revenue rose 3 percentage points from the prior year, according to management. Source
  • Offering raised $108.7 million: The underwritten offering of 1,916,667 shares, including the full exercise of the underwriters' option, closed with net proceeds after discounts and expenses. Source

“The continued expansion of digital interactions, coupled with increasingly sophisticated AI-driven fraud, is fueling demand for identity resolution, fraud prevention, and compliance solutions.”

Derek Dubner, red violet’s CEO

What changed from last quarter

  • New: Community Alerts was introduced as a recent FOREWARN feature that lets an agent flag a concerning interaction to the wider network. Source
  • New: A multi-year contract was signed in October 2026 with another Secretary of State, after the quarter ended. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Revenue rose 20% to record: Revenue reached $27.8 million, up 20% on the prior year, and the company reported record revenue and record operating cash flow for the quarter. Source
  • Trailing revenue passed $100 million: Trailing twelve-month revenue passed $100 million for the first time, according to the press release headline results. Source
  • Net income and EPS grew: Net income rose 29% to $5.4 million, with diluted EPS of $0.35; adjusted diluted EPS was $0.47 as reported in the release. Source
  • Growth spread across verticals: Management said each of the five revenue verticals contributed solid growth, and that results came from across the business rather than a single driver. Source

Segments and verticals

  • Financial and Corporate Risk grew: Financial Services grew steadily on deeper usage in its existing base. Background Screening and Insurance accelerated, with uptake of enhanced Background Screening offerings. Source
  • Investigative was fastest-growing vertical: Investigative was the fastest-growing vertical by percentage again. Law Enforcement, Private Investigators, Bail Bonds and Process Servers each posted double-digit growth. Source
  • Collections recovery continued: Management said Collections has grown for several consecutive quarters, with consumer delinquencies elevated and more accounts entering collections. Source
  • Emerging Markets grew broadly: Government, Repossession, Legal, Retail and Marketing all contributed to Emerging Markets growth. Management said the company remains early in penetrating many of these markets. Source
  • Real Estate softness in IDI: IDI's Real Estate business declined at a high single-digit rate year over year, partly offset within the vertical by FOREWARN double-digit revenue growth. Source

“September was our highest revenue month in our history and October was just as good.”

Derek Dubner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Products and customers

  • IDI onboarding pace near highs: IDI customer onboarding stayed at or near the company's highs and well above the pace of a year ago, management said, with new billable customers added in the quarter. Source
  • FOREWARN reached 665 associations: FOREWARN added users in the quarter. Over 665 REALTOR Associations are contracted to use the product, up from 660 in the prior release. Source
  • Community Alerts offered free: Community Alerts is currently a no-cost benefit inside the FOREWARN subscription. Management said the feature sits within a network built as essential safety for all. Source

Public sector and government

  • Law enforcement penetration runway: Management said the company now serves more than 1,000 law enforcement agencies, a small share of the national count, which it sees as significant runway. Source
  • State-level contract signed: Management cited the state-level work as supporting identity resolution and fraud prevention, showing the relevance of its capabilities across a wider range of government use cases. Source
  • Federal agency relationships still developing: The company said it is educating federal agencies about IDI and the platform, and that building these relationships takes time. Source

“What stands out is the consistency of the contribution across the business rather than from any single driver.”

Dan MacLachlan, Chief Financial Officer

Costs, margins and profitability

  • Adjusted gross margin reached 85%: Adjusted gross profit was $23.7 million, with adjusted gross margin of 85%, up 1 percentage point on the prior year. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin at 40%: Adjusted EBITDA rose 22% to $11.0 million. Management described the quarter as another Rule of 60 result, combining 20% revenue growth with a 40% margin. Source
  • Cost of revenue rose 11%: Cost of revenue, excluding depreciation and amortization, increased to $4.0 million for the quarter. Source
  • Sales and marketing costs rose: Sales and marketing expenses rose on personnel costs and a higher provision for bad debt. Source
  • G&A rose on personnel and acquisitions: General and administrative expenses rose on higher personnel costs and acquisition-related activity during the quarter. Source

Demand and revenue mix

  • Contractual revenue share rose: The contractual share of total revenue rose 3 percentage points from the prior year, according to management. Source
  • No one-time transactional revenue: Management said results reflected regular-course business across a diverse customer base, with no meaningful one-time transactional contributions. Source
  • Pipeline and conversion grew: Management said pipeline and conversion grew across customer cohorts, with customers moving up tiers and smaller cohorts also expanding. Source
  • September was highest revenue month: Management said September was the company's highest revenue month in its history, and that October was similar. Source

Capital, cash and returns to shareholders

  • Offering raised $108.7 million: The underwritten offering of 1,916,667 shares, including the full exercise of the underwriters' option, closed with net proceeds after discounts and expenses. Source
  • Cash and Treasuries at $165.7 million: Cash and Treasury investments totaled $165.7 million at September 30, 2026, with no debt outstanding. Source
  • Operating cash flow reached $12.7 million: Operating cash flow rose 25% to $12.7 million, which the release described as a record. Source
  • Free cash flow set a record: Free cash flow rose 21% to $8.8 million, which management described as a record for the quarter. Source
  • No buybacks in third quarter: No shares were repurchased in the third quarter. Year to date the company bought 74,500 shares at $41.87, with $15.5 million remaining under the program. Source

Strategy, investment and M&A

  • Investment remains first priority: Management said investment in the business comes first, covering the platform, data assets, product development and go-to-market. It described the capital allocation strategy as unchanged. Source
  • M&A evaluated under high bar: Management said it keeps a high bar on acquisitions and sees more private founder-led targets that find it hard to raise capital, and it will walk away from deals. Source
  • AI investment and new applications: The company said it has increased AI investment over several quarters, with AI used across data aggregation, customer tools and new applications in development. Source
  • Continued go-to-market investment: Management said it will keep investing in go-to-market, infrastructure and product development, citing demand across the business and new markets such as home healthcare with FOREWARN. Source

People, AI and headcount

  • Engineering and sales headcount rose: Supplemental metrics show headcount additions in sales and marketing, engineering and infrastructure, which management said reflects investment in the business. Source
  • AI automation raising productivity: Management said AI-powered automation is streamlining internal processes and raising productivity across the organization. Source
  • Feature development running faster: Management said features and products are being developed at 10 times the former pace, which it linked to AI-assisted development. Source

Coming up, as management said on 5 November 2026

  • Next quarterly update: Management said it will update shareholders on progress next quarter. Source
  • Unannounced applications to come: Management said new applications and new ways of interacting with its solutions have not yet been announced. Source
  • Final quarter and 2027 ahead: Management said the company enters the final quarter of the year growing across nearly every market it serves. Source
  • Acquisition candidates under review: Management said it has a funnel of candidates under review and will transact when it sees one it wants. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
IDI billable customers Source11,252
FOREWARN users Source462,861
Contractual revenue % of total Source78%
Gross revenue retention % Source96%

Risks management discussed

  • External: Management expects softness in IDI's Real Estate business to persist until housing market conditions improve. Source
  • Financial: Management said margins may move from quarter to quarter as hiring and investment continue, and it does not manage the business to quarterly cadence. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Not stated: Management said the tentative signs of improvement it noted last quarter did not carry through in the third quarter. Source
  • Not stated: Management described the quarter as a continuation of consistent performance across multiple recent quarters. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.