TransUnion CFO Todd Cello to step down Dec. 31; credit bureau reaffirms guidance a week before quarter-end
The 29-year veteran will stay on as an adviser until March 1, a day after a 2024 stock award vests. TransUnion kept its third-quarter and full-year outlook, and the shares fell 1.3%.
TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) said on Wednesday that Chief Financial Officer Todd Cello will step down on Dec. 31, 2026, after 29 years at the credit bureau, nine of them as CFO. The company has started a search for his replacement with an executive search firm. It also reaffirmed its third-quarter and full-year 2026 guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted earnings per share. The shares closed down 1.26% at $70.97, according to Nasdaq.
What the filing adds
The press release describes the move as Cello's "personal decision." The Form 8-K adds three details. First, Cello told the company on Sept. 19, four days before the announcement. Second, the company states that his resignation "is not related to a disagreement" over its operations, policies or practices. Investors look for that sentence whenever a CFO leaves. Third, if no successor is hired by Dec. 31, the board expects to name an interim CFO.
The separation agreement explains the length of the handover. Cello stays on as a full-time adviser until March 1, 2027, at his $700,000 base salary. Performance share units granted to him on Feb. 28, 2024 vest on Feb. 28, 2027, as long as he is still employed on that date. He remains eligible for a 2026 bonus with a target of 110% of salary. He gets no 2027 bonus and no new long-term award.
What "reaffirmed" covers
The announcement came one week before the third quarter ends on Sept. 30. At that point most of the quarter's results are already known, so keeping the guidance says more than it would in August. This is the outlook TransUnion raised in July:
| Q3 2026 | Full-year 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1,292M to $1,310M | $5,127M to $5,162M |
| Organic constant-currency growth | 6% to 8% | 8% to 9% |
| Adjusted EBITDA | $455M to $463M | $1,807M to $1,827M |
| Adjusted diluted EPS | $1.18 to $1.21 | $4.75 to $4.83 |
At Wednesday's close, the stock trades at about 14.8 times the midpoint of full-year adjusted EPS guidance, by our calculation. The shares are about 20% below their 52-week high of $89.12.
Why lenders and borrowers should care
TransUnion's U.S. Financial Services unit sells credit data to lenders. It brought in $496 million of the company's $1.31 billion in second-quarter revenue, so the company's growth depends on how much lending activity there is. The July guidance counted on about 3 points of full-year revenue growth from the FICO mortgage score royalty, which ties part of the outlook to mortgage volume. Freddie Mac's 30-year rate was 6.95% in the week of Sept. 17, up from 6.71% two weeks earlier. The Q3 report will show whether mortgage volume held up enough to support the reaffirmed range. The company has not yet announced when it will report third-quarter results. Related: where mortgage rates stand.
Sources: TransUnion Form 8-K, press release and separation agreement (Sept. 23, 2026); Q2 2026 earnings release; Nasdaq quote data. The valuation multiple is our calculation. This is market information, not investment advice.
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