AI, margins and growth shape Q1 earnings

Across sectors, companies reported solid to record first-quarter 2026 revenues. Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR) again generated record net revenues, driven by 19% growth in commission revenue to over $600 million and a 17% rise in GAAP net interest income to $904 million. Trading activity was strong, with customer daily average revenue trades up 24% year over year to 4.4 million.

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) posted first-quarter revenue of $2.77 billion, up 23% from a year earlier, with recurring revenue also rising 23% to $2.4 billion and accounting for 86% of total revenue. Manhattan Associates delivered 7% total revenue growth, or 13% excluding legacy license and maintenance, with cloud revenue up 24%.

Among banks, Capital One reported 2% sequential revenue decline but an 8% increase in pre-provision earnings, supported by seasonal card dynamics and the integration of Discover. Regional banks Hancock Whitney, Hanmi Financial and others cited stable to expanding net interest margins and modest loan growth, despite a volatile rate backdrop.

AI featured prominently across multiple earnings calls. Interactive Brokers highlighted its AI-enabled research tools, including “investment themes and connections,” expanded international coverage, and the Ask IBKR portfolio-query tool. The broker is also using AI in client service chatbots and to automate onboarding, compliance and operations.

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) emphasized its long-term digital and AI roadmap, noting that the da Vinci 5 system captures higher-fidelity surgical data. Management outlined plans to use AI for anatomy identification, decision support, augmented dexterity and eventual elements of automation, all embedded into its surgical ecosystem and training platforms.

Manhattan Associates reported early traction for its “Active Agent” AI suite, with base agents and custom agents embedded directly into warehouse and labor workflows. Management cited specific customers achieving improved order cycle times, reduced labor needs and higher on-time shipments, while stressing that AI-related pricing is intended to preserve existing margin structure.

Margin performance varied by business model. Interactive Brokers reported a pretax margin of 77% for the quarter, its sixth consecutive quarter above 70%, supported by high automation and disciplined expenses. Intuitive Surgical’s non-GAAP operating margin reached 39%, benefiting from fixed-cost leverage and product cost reductions, though management flagged higher oil and memory prices ahead.

For financial institutions, net interest income and margin trends were central. Interactive Brokers’ net interest income rose on higher margin loans and cash balances, despite lower benchmark rates. Capital One’s first-quarter net interest margin was 7.87%, down 39 basis points sequentially largely on seasonality and elevated cash, but management described this as within an expected structural range post-Discover.

Regional and community banks reported generally stable or modestly rising margins. Hancock Whitney’s net interest margin expanded 7 basis points to 3.55%, aided by lower deposit costs and higher securities yields following a bond portfolio restructuring. Hanmi Financial’s margin rose 10 basis points to 3.38%, its seventh consecutive quarter of expansion, as funding costs eased and new loan spreads remained favorable.

Several companies highlighted robust capital positions and stepped-up shareholder returns. Interactive Brokers increased its annual dividend from $0.32 to $0.35 per share, citing record net revenues, strong profitability and a debt-free balance sheet with firm equity up 23% year over year to $21.3 billion.

Manhattan Associates ended the quarter with $226 million in cash and no debt, generated a 28.3% free cash flow margin and repurchased $150 million of stock, with $350 million remaining under its authorization. The company raised its full-year 2026 revenue, operating margin and EPS guidance, while maintaining an 18%–20% RPO growth target.

Capital One finished the quarter with a common equity Tier 1 ratio of 14.4% after repurchasing $2.5 billion of shares. Management noted the recent closing of the Brex acquisition and the in-sourcing of its travel technology, and reiterated that expected post-Discover earnings power, measured in return on tangible common equity, remains consistent with initial deal assumptions.

In brokerage, Interactive Brokers reported double-digit growth in stock, options and futures volumes, record futures contract activity and a 35% year-over-year increase in uninvested client cash to $169 billion. Management expects the SEC’s removal of the Pattern Day Trader rule to broaden retail trading access and views it as an opportunity given its large base of smaller individual accounts.

In medical technology, Intuitive Surgical saw 17% total procedure growth, including 16% for da Vinci and 39% for its Ion lung platform. System placements increased 17% to 431 units, with 232 da Vinci 5 systems, and outside-U.S. procedures grew 20% despite challenges in China and Japan. The company raised its 2026 da Vinci procedure growth forecast to 13.5%–15.5% and nudged gross margin guidance higher.

Software and supply chain specialist Manhattan Associates cited strong cloud bookings, 24% RPO growth to $2.35 billion and over 55% of new cloud bookings from net new customers. Management reiterated a long-term objective of sustainable double-digit growth and top-quartile operating margins, supported by unified warehouse, transportation and order management offerings.