i3 Verticals (NASDAQ:IIIV) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

i3 Verticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IIIV)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $19.92, but opened at $21.87. i3 Verticals shares last traded at $20.9890, with a volume of 16,280 shares.

The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $52.67 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.18 million. i3 Verticals had a net margin of 7.33% and a return on equity of 4.25%. i3 Verticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.080-1.160 EPS.

Key Headlines Impacting i3 Verticals

Here are the key news stories impacting i3 Verticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — EPS of $0.26 vs. $0.24 consensus and revenue of $52.67M slightly above estimates, providing the immediate earnings catalyst. i3 Verticals Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to $1.080–$1.160 vs. consensus ~$0.95, signaling stronger expected profitability and supporting forward valuation. i3 Verticals Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted a strategic acquisition and continued SaaS/recurring revenue growth on the earnings call — a shift toward higher-margin, recurring revenue that investors typically prefer. i3 Verticals Inc (IIIV) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Strategic Acquisition and SaaS Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: The full earnings-call transcript and slide deck are available for detail (useful for modeling revenue mix and acquisition impact). Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript Q1 Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary pieces referenced the results and strategy; useful context but not a direct catalyst. Analysts Offer Insights on Technology Companies
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability and returns remain modest (net margin ~7.7%, ROE ~4.7%), which could limit multiple expansion unless SaaS mix materially improves margins. MarketBeat Earnings Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals are a potential headwind: the stock is trading below its 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages and is near its 52‑week low, which can attract short-term selling pressure. IIIV Stock Profile

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. KeyCorp lowered their price target on i3 Verticals from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of i3 Verticals from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of i3 Verticals in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of i3 Verticals in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of i3 Verticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, i3 Verticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Insider Transactions at i3 Verticals

In related news, CRO Paul Christians sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.27, for a total transaction of $209,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 45,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,066,184.86. The trade was a 16.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Frederick Stanford sold 11,347 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.21, for a total value of $274,710.87. Following the transaction, the president owned 43,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,056,839.13. This trade represents a 20.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 23,639 shares of company stock worth $562,425 over the last quarter. 60.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On i3 Verticals

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IIIV. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of i3 Verticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,145,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in i3 Verticals during the second quarter worth about $281,000. Tectonic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in i3 Verticals during the third quarter worth about $2,883,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of i3 Verticals by 19.6% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 655,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,264,000 after acquiring an additional 107,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in shares of i3 Verticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $519,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.22% of the company’s stock.

i3 Verticals Trading Up 5.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $678.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.82 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.26.

i3 Verticals Company Profile

i3 Verticals, Inc is a provider of integrated software and merchant payment processing solutions tailored for specific vertical markets across the United States. Since its founding in 2001 and headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, the company has focused on delivering SaaS-based applications and payment services to streamline revenue collection and management workflows for its clients.

The company’s product portfolio includes electronic payment processing for credit and debit card transactions, automated clearing house (ACH) transfers, online and mobile payment portals, and related risk management and compliance tools.