Upbound Group Stock Earnings Reports

Q1 2026 highlights: Upbound delivered a solid start to 2026 with revenue of $1.2B (up 3.7% YoY), adjusted EBITDA of $136M (up ~8%), non-GAAP diluted EPS of $1.08 (up 8%), strong operating cash flow of $171M and free cash flow of $136M. The company reduced net leverage sequentially to ~2.6x and ended the quarter with ~$465M in liquidity. Strategy & priorities: management is focused on building a more connected, tech-enabled financial platform using data, analytics and AI to improve underwriting, personalization and operating efficiency; leadership additions (new CTO Balaji Kumar, CFO Hal Khouri, Chief Growth Officer Rebecca Wooters) support those plans. Segments: Brigit showed strong growth (revenue $68M, ~27% paying user growth, ARPU ~$14.41, adjusted EBITDA ~$22.9M) and is piloting a line-of-credit product for broader rollout later in the year; Acima saw GMV down (~6% YoY) primarily due to deliberate underwriting tightening, but lease charge-offs improved to ~8.8% (130 bps sequential improvement) and adjusted EBITDA rose to ~$89M; Rent-A-Center delivered another quarter of same-store sales growth (40 bps), modestly lower revenue, stable losses (~4.7%) and an Amazon pickup/returns partnership rolling out to ~1,700 stores. Guidance & capital allocation: management reiterated its 2026 consolidated targets from the prior call — revenue ~$4.7B–$4.95B, adjusted EBITDA $500M–$535M, non-GAAP EPS $4.00–$4.35, and expects ~ $200M free cash flow for 2026 (guidance assumes about $70M of non‑ordinary legal/regulatory settlements). Dividend: paid $0.39/share (approx. $23M) in Q1. Risks & positioning: management emphasizes continued underwriting discipline given a stressed non‑prime consumer (sticky inflation, higher fuel costs), while prioritizing deleveraging (long‑term target ~2x leverage), selective reinvestment in technology and measured product rollouts to preserve unit economics.