Analyst Ratings February 17, 2026

BofA Restores Buy on Fair Isaac, Cites Pricing Levers Beyond FICO Score

Analyst lifts coverage to Buy with $1,900 target, points to licensing and software momentum amid strong quarter

By Derek Hwang FICO
BofA Restores Buy on Fair Isaac, Cites Pricing Levers Beyond FICO Score
FICO

BofA Securities reinstated coverage of Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) with a Buy rating and a $1,900 price target, citing the company’s entrenched credit-scoring franchise, high profit margins and growth drivers in licensing and software. The price target implies roughly 39% upside versus the prevailing share price, while broader analyst consensus indicates larger upside potential. Recent quarterly results beat expectations, though the stock fell in after-hours trading.

Key Points

  • BofA reinstated coverage on Fair Isaac with a Buy rating and set a $1,900 price target, implying roughly 39% upside from a $1,364.81 share price; InvestingPro consensus shows about 49% potential upside.
  • BofA emphasized the enduring role of the FICO Score in lending and cited the company’s strong unit economics: an 82.9% gross profit margin and 16.2% revenue growth over the trailing twelve months.
  • Growth drivers named by BofA include the Mortgage Direct Licensing program, which enables resellers to distribute scores directly, and improving software business metrics such as rising annual contract value bookings.

BofA Securities has resumed coverage of Fair Isaac Corp. (NYSE:FICO) with a Buy rating and a price target of $1,900, the firm said Monday. That target equates to about a 39% increase from the then-current share price of $1,364.81 and is broadly consistent with analyst optimism: InvestingPro data referenced by the firm shows an average projected upside of 49% among the wider analyst community.

The reinstatement reflects BofA’s assessment of Fair Isaac’s business beyond its core FICO Score product. The analyst emphasized that the FICO Score remains the entrenched industry standard for lending decisions and continues to serve as a major profit center for the company, supported by proprietary data assets. The firm pointed to FICO’s 82.9% gross profit margin and 16.2% revenue growth over the last 12 months as evidence of the business’s profitability and momentum.

As part of its rationale, BofA highlighted Fair Isaac’s Mortgage Direct Licensing program. That initiative, the firm said, expands the company’s pricing power and ability to capture value by permitting resellers to distribute scores directly to customers. BofA views the licensing program as a meaningful driver of incremental revenue and an element that can enhance FICO’s commercial leverage.

In addition to licensing, BofA pointed to improving performance in the company’s software segment. The analyst noted that software bookings are reporting higher annual contract values, a dynamic the firm interprets as a foundation for continued margin and revenue expansion. Taken together, BofA described a multi-year opportunity for FICO to grow both top line and margins.


Earnings update

Fair Isaac reported first-quarter results for fiscal year 2026 that beat consensus expectations. The company delivered non-GAAP earnings of $7.33 per share versus an expected $7.07. Revenue came in at $512 million, topping forecasts of $500.72 million and representing a 16% increase compared with the same period a year earlier.

Despite the upside on both earnings and revenue, FICO’s stock fell 2.8% in after-hours trading following the release. The company did not report any mergers or acquisitions in the period, and analyst firms did not register upgrades or downgrades in the reports cited. These items together captured the primary market and operational developments for the quarter.


Overall, BofA’s return to coverage frames Fair Isaac as a company with entrenched market positions, attractive unit economics and identifiable growth initiatives in licensing and software. The firm’s $1,900 price target and Buy rating reflect that view, while recent quarterly results supplied immediate evidence of revenue and earnings momentum even as the stock experienced near-term volatility.

Risks

  • Short-term share price volatility — FICO’s stock dropped 2.8% in after-hours trading despite beating earnings and revenue estimates; this affects investor returns in the financials sector.
  • Timing and realization of multi-year revenue and margin expansion are uncertain — while BofA projects multi-year upside, the pace of that expansion was not quantified in the reports, creating execution risk for investors monitoring software and licensing adoption.
  • No reported mergers or acquisitions and no analyst upgrades or downgrades were recorded in the cited reports, leaving near-term external corporate catalysts limited for the stock; this may influence market activity in the software and financial services sectors.

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