Thomson Reuters (NYSE: TRI) reported Q1 EPS of $0.48, $0.10 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.58. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.52 billion versus the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion.

"Given the challenges we are all facing from the COVID-19 pandemic, our main priority remains the health and safety of all of our employees. I want to thank them for how they have stepped up to support our customers around the globe as they help businesses, communities and economies do what they can to move forward," said Steve Hasker, president and CEO of Thomson Reuters. "We entered the year with an encouragingly strong start and delivered a good first quarter as our Legal, Corporates and Tax & Accounting segments - 80% of total revenues – grew 4% organically. As we generate most of our revenues from selling information and software solutions electronically and on a subscription basis, our businesses have historically been resilient over time, but they are not immune to the recent downturn in the global economy. We are confident that our 'must-have' products and solutions, deep and long-term customer relationships, and strong balance sheet and liquidity position will enable us to emerge on the other side even stronger."

Updated Business Outlook for 2020

Thomson Reuters today updated its full-year outlook for 2020. The company originally communicated a 2020 full-year business outlook in February 2020. Since the middle of March, the global economy has experienced unprecedented disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the uncertainty about the duration and impact of the crisis, it is still too early to predict how and when world markets may recover.

Thomson Reuters has updated its outlook based on its current view, and the company expects to provide another update with the release of its second-quarter results. In addition, the company provided a new full-year 2020 outlook for its "Big 3" segments (Legal Professionals, Corporates and Tax & Accounting Professionals) for total revenue growth, organic revenue growth and adjusted EBITDA margin.

The updated outlook assumes diminished economic activity through the second quarter followed by a gradual recovery through the second half of 2020. The updated outlook also assumes the financial and operational health of the company's customer base in both the U.S. and global economies will gradually improve, which the company believes will coincide with the easing of lockdowns and other restrictions.

The company utilized three scenarios to update its outlook. The three scenarios assume the gradual economic improvement will begin in July 2020, October 2020 and January 2021. The company's updated outlook was derived by taking the mid-point of the July 2020 and October 2020 scenarios.

The updated outlook also assumes that the company will be able to mitigate the impact of anticipated lower 2020 revenues through its $100 million cost reduction program. While the company believes it will still generate strong free cash flow, it has lowered its free cash flow forecast to approximately $1.0 billion for the full-year 2020. The lower free cash flow guidance assumes lower revenues and temporary delays in collecting payments from some customers, but the company believes this cash will be collected as the economy improves.

The company's updated outlook for 2020 continues to assume constant currency rates and excludes the impact of any future acquisitions or dispositions that may occur in 2020. Thomson Reuters believes that this type of guidance provides useful insight into the performance of its businesses.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Thomson Reuters (TRI) click here.