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‘Varney & Co.’ and ‘Kudlow’ Notch 16th Consecutive Quarter as the Top Two Business Programs in Television  

‘The Big Money Show’ Delivers Highest-Rated Quarter Ever

NEW YORK – April 1, 2026 – FOX Business Network (FBN) delivered its fifth straight quarterly win over CNBC in business day, market hours and total day during quarter one of 2026. According to Nielsen Media Research Big Data + Panel, Varney & Co. and Kudlow ranked as the top two business programs for the 16th straight quarter. Meanwhile, The Big Money Show posted its highest rated quarter ever with total viewers.

During business day, FBN scored its second highest-rated quarter ever, securing 249,000 viewers, a 11% advantage over CNBC. Notably, this marked the network’s sixth consecutive quarter dominating CNBC in business day viewers. Additionally, throughout market hours, FBN nabbed its fifth straight victory, averaging 246,000 viewers and holding a 6% advantage over CNBC. Across total day, the network secured its eighth consecutive win over CNBC, scoring 148,000 viewers with a 4% lead. 

The three-hour market opener Varney & Co. (9AM-12PM/ET) posted a 22% advantage over CNBC’s Squawk on the Street/Money Movers delivering 305,000 viewers and marking the program’s 16th consecutive quarterly win. Additionally, the program saw its third highest rated quarter ever with total viewers. Larry Kudlow’s eponymous Kudlow (4 PM/ET; 278,000 viewers) saw its 18th straight quarterly win with total viewers attracting a whopping 47% lead over Closing Bell.

FBN’s pre-market program, Mornings with Maria (6-9 AM/ET) secured 120,000 viewers, a 4% increase year-over-year. All mid-day programs delivered double-digit year-over-year gains and scored their highest-rated quarter since 2020. The Big Money Show (12-2 PM/ET) saw 224,000 viewers marking a 29% increase, making it the program’s highest quarter ever with total viewers. Meanwhile, Making Money with Charles Payne (2 PM/ET; 197,000 viewers) grew 19% from 2025 and Liz Claman’s The Claman Countdown (3 PM/ET; 205,000 viewers) posted a 27% surge from the previous year. 

The network’s post-market programs all delivered double-digit advantages over their competition. The Evening Edit (5 PM/ET) nabbed 206,000 viewers with a 23% lead over CNBC’s Fast Money, while The Bottom Line (6 PM/ET) saw 166,000 viewers leading Mad Money by 30%. Notably, this marked both programs’ eighth straight win over their competition. On Fridays, Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street (Fridays, 7-7:30 PM/ET) captured 103,000 viewers with an astounding 45% lead over CNBC’s Shark Tank, marking its seventh consecutive victory. Furthermore, during the second half of the 7 PM/ET hour, Barron’s Roundtable (Fridays, 7:30-8 PM/ET) reached 84,000 viewers with a 14% lead over Shark Tank.

***Below is the data according to Nielsen Media Research  

Ratings for the month of first quarter 2026  

Business Day (M-F 9:30 AM-5 PM/ET)

FBN: 249,000 total viewers and 12,000 A25-54

CNBC: 224,000 total viewers and 53,000 A25-54

Market Hours (M-F 9 AM-4 PM/ET)

FBN: 246,000 total viewers and 12,000 A25-54

CNBC: 231,000 total viewers and 56,000 A25-54

Total Day (M-F)

FBN: 148,000 total viewers and 11,000 A25-54 

CNBC: 142,000 total viewers and 36,000 A25-54

**Program Specials Excluded​**  

Sourcing: Nielsen, Live + SD. Big Data + Panel, 1Q’26 (12/29/25-03/27/26). 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 nearly 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