160.6%. That is how much ACI Worldwide’s net income increased in the three months ended June 30, reaching $31.8 million from $12.2 million a year earlier.
The first read is straightforward: ACI sold more and kept more of it. Revenue rose 7.3% to $430.4 million, while operating income climbed 28.1% to $44.6 million. Operating margin widened to 10.4% from 8.7%.
The less tidy detail is in the balance sheet and cash-flow math. Accounts receivable rose 15.3%, more than twice the pace of revenue. Capital spending increased 127.8%, and free-cash-flow margin declined 0.9 percentage points. The filing does not disclose why receivables grew faster than sales, so the useful question is not whether profit improved. It is how quickly that improvement becomes cash.
One clear contributor to the earnings jump was financing cost. ACI said interest expense fell as debt balances and interest rates declined.
"33 Other Income and Expense Interest expense for the three months ended June 30, 2026, decreased $2.5 million, or 18%, as compared to the same period in 2025, primarily due to lower comparative debt balances as well as a decrease in interest rates."
ACI Worldwide, 10-Q filed Aug. 6, 2026
That is a real lift to the income statement, but it is not operating revenue. Lower interest expense helped more of the operating result reach net income, while cash was also used for capital spending, share repurchases, and payments on the term loan.
The operating segments were not moving in lockstep. ACI’s Biller segment added $12.1 million of revenue in the three months, but its adjusted EBITDA fell $5.0 million because payment card interchange and other processing costs rose $17.1 million.
"38 Biller Segment Adjusted EBITDA decreased $5.0 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, compared to the same period in 2025, due to a $17.1 million increase in cash operating expense primarily for payment card interchange and other processing fees, partially offset by a $12.1 million increase in revenue."
ACI Worldwide, 10-Q filed Aug. 6, 2026
In plain English, the top line expanded, but one of the business’s cost lines grew faster in Biller. The company’s overall operating margin still improved; lower interest expense helped net income, while a decrease in professional and legal fees reduced an operating expense. Stock compensation moved the other way, rising 14.0% to $18.7 million.
ACI’s own annual results provide a useful backdrop without settling the issue. Revenue growth reached 9.8% in 2024 and 10.4% in 2025, while the latest full-year operating margin was 18.7%. The current three-month margin is lower than that annual figure, and the latest filing adds a separate cash-conversion wrinkle through receivables and investment spending.
Liquidity also narrowed. ACI disclosed total liquidity of $540.5 million at June 30, down from $594.6 million at the end of 2025, with the decrease primarily tied to share repurchases and term-loan payments, partly offset by cash generated from operations.
ACI’s next quarterly report will provide the next comparable read on accounts receivable, capital spending, and free-cash-flow margin. The filing leaves one plain tension: profit arrived faster than cash.