FOX BUSINESS NETWORK DOMINATED CNBC ACROSS BUSINESS DAY AND MARKET HOURS IN FEBRUARY 2026
‘Varney & Co.’ and ‘Kudlow’ Placed as the Top Two Business Programs in Television for the 48th and 53rd Consecutive Months, Respectively
NEW YORK – February 25, 2026 – FOX Business Network (FBN) dominated CNBC across business day and market hours in February 2026, according to Nielsen Media Research Big Data + Panel. Led by FBN’s market open and close programs, Varney & Co. and Kudlow placed as the top two business programs in television for the 48th and 53rd consecutive months, respectively.
Setting ten straight months outranking CNBC in business day (262,000) and market hours (259,000) viewers, FBN beat the competition with 13% and 9% wins, separately. In total day viewers, FBN garnered 155,000 viewers.
The three-hour market opener Varney & Co. (9 AM-12 PM/ET) marked four years as the top business program in television securing a 27% win (318,000 viewers) and 48th consecutive monthly sweep of CNBC’s Squawk on the Street. Meanwhile, Larry Kudlow’s eponymous Kudlow (4 PM/ET) was the second most-watched business program in television with 285,000 viewers, delivering a whopping 45% advantage over CNBC’s Closing Bell and 53rd straight monthly win.
Maria Bartiromo’s pre-market program, Mornings with Maria (6-9 AM/ET) reached 10 back-to-back months as the dominant pre-market show on television with 127,000 viewers, continuing its advantage over Squawk Box. Meanwhile, The Big Money Show (12-2 PM/ET) saw 231,000 viewers, Making Money with Charles Payne (2 PM/ET) nabbed 209,000 viewers and Liz Claman’s The Claman Countdown (3 PM/ET) notched 215,000 viewers.
FBN’s post-market program The Evening Edit (5 PM/ET; 211,000 viewers) saw a 15% advantage over its competition Fast Money, while The Bottom Line (6 PM/ET; 178,000 viewers) saw a 14% advantage over CNBC’s marquee program Mad Money with Jim Cramer. Both program’s double-digit wins marked their 24th consecutive monthly victory.
On Fridays, Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street (Fridays, 7-7:30 PM/ET) saw 103,000 viewers with a 36% advantage over CNBC’s Shark Tank. During the second half of the 7 PM/ET hour, Barron’s Roundtable (Fridays, 7:30-8 PM/ET) delivered 84,000 viewers, continuing its reign over CNBC’s Shark Tank for the second month straight.
***Below is the data according to Nielsen Media Research
Ratings for the month of February 2026
Business Day (M-F 9:30 AM-5 PM/ET)
FBN: 262,000 total viewers and 12,000 A25-54
CNBC: 231,000 total viewers and 55,000 A25-54
Market Hours (M-F 9 AM-4 PM/ET)
FBN: 259,000 total viewers and 12,000 A25-54
CNBC: 237,000 total viewers and 58,000 A25-54
Total Day (M-F)
FBN: 155,000 total viewers and 10,000 A25-54
CNBC: 167,000 total viewers and 44,000 A25-54
**Program Specials Excluded**
Sourcing: Nielsen, Live + SD. Big Data + Panel, Feb’26 (01/26/26-02/22/26). Business Day (M-F 9:30am-5pm), Market Hours (M-F 9am-4pm), M-F Total Day (Based on each network’s Nielsen defined programming day). Business News Ranker M-F 5am-8pm Business Programs (Excludes Specials & Repeats).
FOX Business Network (FBN) is a financial news channel delivering real-time information across all platforms that impact both Main Street and Wall Street. Headquartered in New York — the business capital of the world — FBN launched in October 2007 and is currently the top business channel on television. The network is available in more than 60 million homes in all markets across the United States and live streamed on FOX One. Owned by Fox Corporation, FBN is a unit of FOX News Media and has bureaus in Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
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FOX Business Network Media Contact:
Courtney Ur: 212.301.3851 or Courtney.Ur@FOX.com