Upbound Group Inc.
05/01/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/01/2026 07:20
Quarterly Report for Quarter Ending March 31, 2026 (Form 10-Q)
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q includes "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. They often include words such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "seeks" or words of similar meaning, or future or conditional verbs, such as "will," "should," "could," "may," "aims," "intends," or "projects." These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, those relating to the impact of ongoing challenging macroeconomic conditions on our business, operations, financial performance and prospects, the future business prospects and financial performance of our Company as a whole and our segments, our growth strategies, our expectations, plans and strategy relating to our capital structure and capital allocation, including any share repurchases under our share repurchase program, the potential impact of the matters discussed in Note 11 - "Contingencies" in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and other statements that are not historical facts. Unless expressly indicated or the context requires otherwise, the terms "Upbound Group, Inc.," "Company," "we," "us," and "our" in this document refer to Upbound Group, Inc. and, where appropriate, its subsidiaries.
A forward-looking statement is neither a prediction nor a guarantee of future events or circumstances, and those future events or circumstances may not occur. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. These forward-looking statements are based on currently available operating, financial and competitive information and are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Our actual future results and trends may differ materially and adversely depending on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, the risks and uncertainties discussed under "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" below. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not rely on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Any or all of the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and any other public statement made by us, including by our management, may turn out to be incorrect. We are including this cautionary note to make applicable and take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, we expressly disclaim any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise. Factors that could cause or contribute to these differences include, but are not limited to:
•difficulties encountered in managing the financial and operational performance of our multiple business segments;
•risks associated with pricing, value proposition and other changes to our consumer offerings and strategies being deployed in our businesses;
•our ability to continue to effectively execute our strategic initiatives, including mitigating risks associated with any potential additional mergers and acquisitions, or lease-to-own refranchising opportunities;
•our ability to effectively provide consumers with additional products and services beyond lease-to-own and products and services currently offered by our Brigit segment, including through third-party partnerships;
•the possibility that costs, difficulties or disruptions related to the integration of Brigit operations into our other operations will be greater than expected;
•the possibility that the anticipated benefits from the Brigit acquisition may not be fully realized or may take longer to realize than expected;
•the general strength of the economy and other economic conditions affecting consumer preferences, spending and payment behaviors, including the availability of credit to our target consumers and to other consumers, impacts from continued or renewed inflation, central bank monetary policy initiatives to address inflation concerns, and a possible recession or slowdown in economic growth;
•failure to effectively manage our operating labor and non-labor operating expenses, including failure to effectively optimize our proprietary algorithms and customer decisioning tools to limit merchandise losses for our lease-to-own offerings;
•our ability to retain the revenue associated with acquired lease-to-own customer accounts and enhance the performance of acquired stores;
•factors affecting the disposable income available to our current and potential customers;
•changes in the unemployment rate;
•capital market conditions, including changes in interest rates and availability of funding sources for us;
•changes in our credit ratings;
•our ability to identify potential acquisition candidates, complete acquisitions and successfully integrate acquired companies;
•disruptions caused by the operation of our information management systems or disruptions in the systems of our third-party retailers or other third parties with whom we do business;
•risks related to our virtual lease-to-own business, including our ability to continue to develop and successfully implement the necessary technologies;
•our ability to achieve the benefits expected from our integrated virtual and staffed third-party retailer offering and to successfully grow this business segment;
•exposure to potential operating margin degradation due to the higher cost of merchandise and higher merchandise losses in our Acima segment compared to our Rent-A-Center segment;
•additional risks associated with our Brigit segment and its consumer products and services, including managing losses, regulatory, licensing and other compliance risks, risks associated with our Brigit segment's reliance on regulated banks and on providers of third-party data and technology and other third-party service providers; and other new risks for our Company;
•our ability to (i) effectively adjust to changes in the composition of our offerings and product mix as a result of acquiring Brigit and continue to maintain the quality of existing offerings and (ii) successfully introduce other new product or service offerings on a timely and cost-effective basis;
•changes in our future cash requirements as a result of the Brigit acquisition, whether caused by unanticipated increases in capital expenditures or working capital needs, unanticipated liabilities or otherwise;
•our ability to retain the talent and dedication of key employees of Brigit;
•litigation or administrative proceedings to which we are or may be a party to from time to time and changes in estimates relating to litigation reserves, including in each case in connection with the regulatory and litigation matters described in Note 11 to our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q;
•our compliance with applicable statutes and regulations governing our businesses, impacts from the enforcement of existing laws and regulations and the enactment of new laws and regulations adversely affecting our business and any legislative or other regulatory enforcement efforts or private party litigation or arbitration that seeks to re-characterize store-based or virtual lease-to-own transactions as credit sales and to apply consumer credit laws and regulations to our lease-to-own business or to apply consumer credit laws to our Brigit segment's non-credit consumer offerings, in each case including in connection with, but not limited to, the regulatory matters described in Note 11 to our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q;
•our transition to more-readily scalable "cloud-based" solutions;
•our ability to continue to enhance digital or e-commerce capabilities, including mobile applications;
•our ability to protect our proprietary intellectual property and to defend against allegations by third parties that any of our products, services or business activities may infringe against their intellectual property rights;
•risks from development, deployment and governance of artificial intelligence ("AI") and adjacent technologies, including technical failures or inaccuracies, rapid adoption by our competitors, and evolving regulatory requirements that may restrict certain AI uses or increase compliance costs;
•our ability or that of our third-party retailers or other third parties with whom we do business to protect the integrity and security of customer, employee, supplier and third-party retailer or other third-party information, which may be adversely affected by hacking, computer viruses, cybersecurity attacks or similar disruptions;
•impairment of our goodwill or other intangible assets;
•disruptions in our supply chain;
•limitations of, or disruptions in, our distribution network;
•rapid inflation or deflation in the prices of our lease-to-own products and other related costs;
•allegations of product safety and quality control issues, including recalls of goods we lease to customers;
•our ability to execute, as well as the effectiveness of, lease-to-own store consolidations, including our ability to retain the revenue from customer accounts merged into another store location as a result of a store consolidation;
•our available cash flow and our ability to generate sufficient cash flow to continue paying dividends;
•increased competition from traditional competitors, virtual lease-to-own competitors, online retailers, Buy-Now-Pay-Later, earned wage access and financial health technology competitors and other fintech companies and other competitors, including subprime lenders;
•our ability to identify and successfully market products and services that appeal to our current and future targeted customer segments and to accurately estimate the size of the total addressable market;
•consumer preferences and perceptions of our brands;
•our ability to enter into new rental or lease purchase agreements and collect on our existing rental or lease purchase agreements;
•ongoing changes in tariff policies, including impacts from tariffs proposed or imposed by the current U.S. Presidential Administration on the price of imported goods, or consumer prices overall or other financial impacts of such tariffs or proposed or imposed retaliatory tariffs enacted by U.S. trading partners on our costs or target consumers;
•adverse changes in the economic conditions of the industries, countries or markets that we serve;
•information technology and data security costs;
•the impact of breaches in data security or other disturbances to our information technology and other networks;
•changes in estimates relating to self-insurance liabilities and income tax reserves;
•changes in our effective tax rate;
•fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates;
•our ability to maintain an effective system of internal controls; and
•the other risks detailed from time to time in our reports furnished or filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").
Additional important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our expectations are discussed under the section "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Our Business
We are a technology and data-driven leader in accessible and inclusive financial solutions that address the evolving needs and aspirations of underserved consumers. Through our Acima and Rent-A-Center segments, we are a leading lease-to-own provider with operations in the United States, Puerto Rico and Mexico. We provide a critical service for underserved consumers by providing them with access to, and the opportunity to obtain ownership of, high-quality, name brand durable products under a flexible lease-purchase agreement with no long-term debt obligation. Our Acima segment offers lease-to-own solutions through retailers in stores and online enabling such retailers to grow sales by expanding their customer base utilizing our differentiated offering and allowing customers to access our flexible lease-to-own solutions at thousands of retailers and to lease a wide range of durable products. Through our Rent-A-Center segment, we provide a fully integrated customer experience through our e-commerce platform and brick and mortar presence.
On January 31, 2025, we completed the acquisition of Brigit, a holistic financial health technology company that has helped millions of customers improve their financial health and literacy, find ways to earn and save money, access their earned wages before their regularly scheduled payday, build their credit through savings and protect themselves from identity theft. Its mission is to help customers build a better financial future. See Note 2 in our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for additional information.
We were incorporated in the State of Delaware in 1986, and our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "UPBD."
Executive Summary
Our Strategy
Our strategy is focused on achieving our mission to elevate financial opportunity for all and growing our business through emphasis on the following key initiatives:
•At Acima, grow penetration with current Acima third-party retailers and build on our strength with small to medium size businesses while also adding new national and regional third-party retailers to our platform and expanding our direct-to-consumer channels;
•At Brigit, continue to grow Brigit's EWA, credit builder and other existing products and increase Brigit's portfolio of products;
•At Rent-A-Center, accelerate the shift to e-commerce, improve the fully integrated omni-channel customer experience and expand product categories, which we expect will increase brand awareness and customer loyalty;
•Leverage data analytics capabilities to attract new customers, approve more customers and mitigate risk across business segments;
•Execute on market opportunities and enhance our competitive position across both traditional and virtual lease-to-own solutions, and implement complementary products and services that supplement our current offerings and provide our customers more financial alternatives; and
•Upgrade and integrate technology platforms to allow for a more simplified and seamless consumer experience, third-party retailer and waterfall integration, consumer transaction process and coworker efficiency.
As we pursue our strategy, we have taken, and may in the future take, advantage of joint venture, partnership, or merger and acquisition opportunities from time to time that advance our key initiatives and elevate the financial mobility of underserved consumers.
Recent Developments
Dividend. On March 25, 2026, we announced that our board of directors approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.39 per share for the first quarter of 2026. The dividend was paid on April 28, 2026 to our common stockholders of record as of the close of business on April 7, 2026.
Executive Management Change. Effective March 30, 2026, Balaji Kumar joined Upbound Group, Inc. as Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer. Mr. Kumar brings more than 25 years of technology leadership experience across financial services and retail.
Business and Operational Trends
Macroeconomic Conditions. In recent years, we have experienced significant change in business and operational trends driven by macroeconomic conditions, which have directly impacted our customers as well as our operations, including significant changes in the U.S. consumer price index, changes in demand for certain consumer retail categories, changes in consumer payment behaviors, a condensed labor market, which has also contributed to wage inflation, rapid increases in interest rates, changes in tariff and trade policies, and global supply chain disruptions resulting in reduced product availability and rising product costs.
While our businesses have historically remained resilient through various economic cycles, the full extent to which our risk management strategy and these macroeconomic trends (including consumer spending and payment behavior) may impact the Company in future periods is uncertain. The continuation of volatile macroeconomic trends may have a material adverse impact on our financial statements, including our results of operations, operating cash flows, liquidity and capital resources.
See "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, for additional discussion of impacts to our business and additional risks associated with macroeconomic conditions.
Rent-A-Center e-commerce revenue. In recent years, e-commerce revenues have increased over time as a percentage of total rentals and fees revenue in our Rent-A-Center segment. For the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, e-commerce revenues represented approximately 28% and 27% of total lease-to-own revenues, respectively. Due to recent trends in consumer shopping behaviors and expectations, we believe e-commerce solutions are an important part of our lease-to-own offering. However, we are unable to quantify the extent to which e-commerce revenues are incremental compared to what our overall revenues would have been in the absence of those e-commerce transactions. In addition, the profitability of e-commerce transactions can be impacted by different merchandise loss factors compared to traditional store-based transactions in the Rent-A-Center segment. Therefore, we are unable to determine with certainty whether the continuation of this trend toward increased e-commerce transactions will have a significant impact on our financial statements in future periods or be ultimately favorable or unfavorable to our financial results.
Results of Operations
The following discussion focuses on our results of operations and our liquidity and capital resources. You should read this discussion in conjunction with the condensed consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the three months ended March 31, 2026 included in Part I, Item 1 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Key Metrics
Gross Merchandise Volume ("GMV"): The Company defines Gross Merchandise Volume as the retail value in U.S. dollars of merchandise acquired by the Acima segment that is leased to customers through a transaction that occurs within a defined period, net of estimated cancellations as of the measurement date.
Lease Portfolio Value: Represents the aggregate dollar value of the expected monthly rental income associated with current active lease agreements from our Company-owned Rent-A-Center lease-to-own stores and e-commerce platform at the end of any given period.
Same Store Lease Portfolio Value: Represents the aggregate dollar value of the expected monthly rental income associated with current active lease agreements from our Company-owned Rent-A-Center lease-to-own stores that were operated by us for 13 months or more at the end of any given period. The Company excludes from the same store base any store that receives a certain level of customer accounts from closed stores or acquisitions. The receiving store will be eligible for inclusion in the same store base in the 30th full month following account transfer.
Same Store Sales: Same store sales generally represents revenue earned in Company-owned Rent-A-Center stores that were operated by us for 13 months or more and are reported on a constant currency basis as a percentage of total revenue earned in stores of the segment during the indicated period. The Company excludes from the same store sales base any store that receives a certain level of customer accounts from closed stores or acquisitions. The receiving store will be eligible for inclusion in the same store sales base in the 30th full month following account transfer.
Lease Charge-Offs ("LCOs") (previously referred to as "skip / stolen losses"): Represents charge-offs of the net book value of unrecoverable on-rent merchandise with lease-to-own customers who are past due. This is typically expressed as a percentage of revenues for the applicable period. For the Rent-A-Center segment, LCOs exclude Get It Now, Home Choice and franchise-owned Rent-A-Center locations.
Brigit Net Advance Losses: Represents charge-offs of Brigit uncollectible customer cash advances that are more than 45 days past due. This is typically expressed as a percentage of total cash advances originated in the applicable period.
Overview
We report four operating segments: Acima, Rent-A-Center, Brigit and Mexico. The following briefly summarizes our financial performance for the three months ended March 31, 2026 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025 on a consolidated basis and for our operating segments.
During the first three months of 2026, consolidated revenues and gross profit increased by approximately $43.4 million and $36.3 million, respectively, primarily due to increases in the Brigit and Acima segment revenues, partially offset by a decrease in Rent-A-Center segment revenues described below. Operating profit increased by approximately $14.8 million, primarily due to the increase in gross profit noted above and decreases in general and administrative expenses and other gains and charges of $6.7 million and $4.9 million, respectively, partially offset by increases in non-labor operating expenses of $31.3 million.
The Acima segment revenues increased approximately $11.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, primarily due to increases in rentals and fees revenues of $12.6 million, primarily resulting from higher GMV in prior quarters and fewer customers electing early purchase options in 2026. Operating profit increased approximately $3.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, primarily due to an increase in gross profit of $7.6 million, partially offset by an increase in non-labor operating expenses of $4.5 million. See "Segment Performance" below for further discussion of Acima segment operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Revenues in our Rent-A-Center segment decreased approximately $7.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, primarily due to decreases in merchandise sales and other revenues of $5.0 million and $3.6 million, respectively, primarily resulting from fewer customers electing early purchase options and lower franchise revenues. Operating profit decreased approximately $4.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, primarily due to a decrease in gross profit of approximately $5.6 million driven by lower revenues, in addition to higher non-labor operating expenses of $5.5 million, partially offset by decreases in general and administrative expenses and operating labor expense of approximately $5.1 million and $1.3 million, respectively. See "Segment Performance" below for further discussion of Rent-A-Center segment operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
The Brigit segment revenues and gross profit increased by $35.8 million and $32.1 million, respectively, primarily due to the three months ended March 31, 2025 including two months of revenues after the Closing Date, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2026, which includes three months of revenues. See "Segment Performance" below for further discussion of Brigit segment operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
The Mexico segment revenues and gross profit increased by 19.6% and 17.3% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, respectively, primarily due to positive impacts of exchange rate fluctuations. See "Segment Performance" below for further discussion of Mexico segment operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Cash flow from operations was $170.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026. As of March 31, 2026, we held $98.4 million of cash and cash equivalents and had outstanding indebtedness of $1.5 billion.
The following table is a reference for the discussion that follows.
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| (dollar amounts in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | $ | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Revenues | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rentals and fees | $ | 916,425 | $ | 899,212 | $ | 17,213 | 1.9 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Merchandise sales | 230,206 | 236,245 | (6,039) | (2.6) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Subscriptions and fees | 67,670 | 31,861 | 35,809 | 112.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other | 5,428 | 9,045 | (3,617) | (40.0) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total revenues | 1,219,729 | 1,176,363 | 43,366 | 3.7 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of revenues | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of rentals and fees | 357,627 | 352,546 | 5,081 | 1.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of merchandise sold | 267,892 | 269,682 | (1,790) | (0.7) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cost of subscriptions and fees | 7,748 | 4,006 | 3,742 | 93.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total cost of revenues | 633,267 | 626,234 | 7,033 | 1.1 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Gross profit | 586,462 | 550,129 | 36,333 | 6.6 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating labor | 149,110 | 149,167 | (57) | - | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Non-labor operating expenses | 250,262 | 219,011 | 31,251 | 14.3 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| General and administrative expenses | 57,090 | 63,787 | (6,697) | (10.5) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 14,139 | 12,252 | 1,887 | 15.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other gains and charges | 38,423 | 43,297 | (4,874) | (11.3) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total operating expenses | 509,024 | 487,514 | 21,510 | 4.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating profit | 77,438 | 62,615 | 14,823 | 23.7 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Interest expense, net | 26,167 | 27,104 | (937) | (3.5) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Earnings before income taxes | 51,271 | 35,511 | 15,760 | 44.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Income tax expense | 15,482 | 10,718 | 4,764 | 44.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Net earnings | $ | 35,789 | $ | 24,793 | $ | 10,996 | 44.4 | % | |||||||||||||||
Three Months Ended March 31, 2026, compared to Three Months Ended March 31, 2025
Revenue. Total revenues increased by $43.3 million, or 3.7%, to $1,219.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from $1,176.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025. This increase was primarily due to increases of approximately $35.8 million and $11.4 million in the Brigit and Acima segments, respectively, partially offset by a decrease of approximately $7.4 million in the Rent-A-Center segment, as discussed further in the "Segment Performance" section below.
Cost of Rentals and Fees. Cost of rentals and fees consists primarily of depreciation of rental merchandise. Cost of rentals and fees for the three months ended March 31, 2026 increased by $5.1 million, or 1.4%, to $357.6 million as compared to $352.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The increase was primarily attributable to an increase of approximately $8.4 million in the Acima segment, driven by an increase in rentals and fees revenues, partially offset by a decrease of approximately $4.4 million in the Rent-A-Center segment. Cost of rentals and fees expressed as a percentage of rentals and fees revenue decreased to 39.0% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 39.2% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Cost of Merchandise Sold. Cost of merchandise sold represents the net book value of rental merchandise at time of sale. Cost of merchandise sold decreased by $1.8 million, or 0.7%, to $267.9 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from $269.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily attributable to a decrease of $4.6 million in the Acima
segment, driven by lower merchandise sales, partially offset by an increase of approximately $2.6 million in the Rent-A-Center segment. The gross margin percent of merchandise sales decreased to (16.4)% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from (14.2)% for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily resulting from lower early purchase option exercises in the Rent-A-Center segment for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Gross Profit. Gross profit increased by $36.4 million, or 6.6%, to $586.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from $550.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to increases of $32.1 million and $7.6 million in the Brigit and Acima segments, respectively, partially offset by a decrease of $5.6 million in the Rent-A-Center segment, as discussed further in the section "Segment Performance" below. Gross profit as a percentage of total revenue increased to 48.1% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from 46.8% for both the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Operating Labor. Operating labor includes all salaries and wages paid to operational employees and district managers, together with payroll taxes and benefits. Operating labor decreased by $0.1 million to $149.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $149.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025. Operating labor expressed as a percentage of total revenue was 12.2% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 12.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Non-Labor Operating Expenses. Non-labor operating expenses include LCOs, occupancy, delivery, advertising, selling, insurance, travel and other operating expenses. Non-labor operating expenses increased by $31.3 million, or 14.3%, to $250.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $219.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to increases of $19.5 million, $5.5 million and $4.5 million in the Brigit, Rent-A-Center and Acima segments, respectively. The increase in the Brigit segment was primarily due to the three months ended March 31, 2025 including two months of expenses after the Closing Date, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2026 which includes three months of expenses, resulting in higher advertising expenses and net advance losses of $9.4 million and $8.9 million, respectively. Non-labor operating expenses expressed as a percentage of total revenue was 20.5% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 18.6% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
General and Administrative Expenses. General and administrative expenses include all corporate overhead expenses related to our headquarters such as salaries, payroll taxes and benefits, stock-based compensation, occupancy, administrative and other expenses, as well as salaries and labor costs for our regional directors, divisional vice presidents and executive vice presidents. General and administrative expenses decreased by $6.7 million, or 10.5%, to $57.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $63.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to a decrease in bad debt expense of $4.2 million related to franchising trade receivables. General and administrative expenses expressed as a percentage of total revenue was 4.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 5.4% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Other Gains and Charges. Other gains and charges decreased by $4.9 million to $38.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $43.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The decrease in other gains and charges was driven primarily by a decrease of $6.6 million in estimated legal accruals and related litigation and defense expenses as described in Note 11 of our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, partially offset by an increase of $1.0 million related to the Brigit acquisition, including depreciation and amortization of the fair value of acquired software and intangible assets, stock compensation expense related to the vesting of a portion of the equity consideration, and other compensation and transaction costs.
Operating Profit. Operating profit increased by $14.8 million, or 23.7%, to $77.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $62.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to increases in gross profit and decreases in general and administrative expenses and other gains and charges, partially offset by an increase in non-labor operating expenses, as described above. Operating profit expressed as a percentage of total revenue was 6.3% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 5.3% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Income Tax Expense. Income tax expense increased by $4.8 million to $15.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $10.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to the increase in earnings before income taxes for the three months ended March 31, 2026 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Segment Performance
Acima segment
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| (dollar amounts in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | $ | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Revenues | $ | 648,690 | $ | 637,287 | $ | 11,403 | 1.8 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Gross profit | 194,100 | 186,451 | 7,649 | 4.1 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating profit | 77,266 | 73,708 | 3,558 | 4.8 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Gross merchandise volume(1)
|
427,084 | 454,100 | (27,016) | (5.9) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) See Key Metrics described above for additional information.
Revenues. The increase in revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to an increase in rentals and fees revenues of $12.6 million, primarily resulting from higher GMV in prior quarters and fewer customers electing early purchase options in 2026.
Gross Profit. Gross profit increased for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, driven primarily by the increase in revenues described above. Gross profit as a percentage of segment revenues increased to 29.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 29.3% for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to fewer customers electing early purchase options in 2026.
Operating Profit. Operating profit as a percentage of segment revenues increased to 11.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 11.6% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The increase in operating profit for the three months ended March 31, 2026 is primarily due to the increase in gross profit. Merchandise losses in our Acima locations due to LCOs, expressed as a percentage of segment revenues, were approximately 8.8% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 8.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. Merchandise losses in our Acima locations due to other merchandise losses, expressed as a percentage of segment revenues, were approximately 0.5% and 0.3% for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, respectively.
Rent-A-Center segment
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| (dollar amounts in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | $ | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Revenues | $ | 481,605 | $ | 489,025 | $ | (7,420) | (1.5) | % | |||||||||||||||
| Gross profit | 317,199 | 322,826 | (5,627) | (1.7) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating profit | 62,276 | 66,415 | (4,139) | (6.2) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Lease portfolio value(1)
|
131,417 | 129,908 | 1,509 | 1.2 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Same store sales lease portfolio value(1)
|
116,289 | 114,671 | 1,618 | 1.4 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Change in same store sales(1)
|
0.4 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stores in same store sales calculation | 1,514 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) See Key Metrics described above for additional information.
Revenues. The decrease in revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, was primarily due to decreases in merchandise sales and other revenues of $5.0 million and $3.6 million, respectively, primarily resulting from fewer customers electing early purchase options and lower franchise revenues.
Gross Profit. Gross profit decreased for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, driven primarily by the decrease in revenues described above. Gross profit as a percentage of segment revenues was 65.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 66.0% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Operating Profit. Operating profit as a percentage of segment revenues was 12.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 13.6% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The decrease in operating profit margin for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, was primarily driven by the decrease in gross profit described above. Merchandise losses in our company-owned Rent-A-Center lease-to-own stores due to LCOs, expressed as a percentage of Rent-A-Center lease-to-own revenues, were approximately 4.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 4.6% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. Other merchandise losses in our company-owned Rent-A-Center
lease-to-own stores, expressed as a percentage of Rent-A-Center lease-to-own revenues, were approximately 0.8% for both the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025. Other merchandise losses include unrepairable and missing merchandise and loss/damage waiver claims.
Brigit segment
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| (dollar amounts in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | $ | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Revenues | $ | 67,670 | $ | 31,861 | $ | 35,809 | 112.4 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Gross profit | 59,922 | 27,855 | 32,067 | 115.1 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating profit | 18,563 | 8,829 | 9,734 | 110.3 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
Revenues. The increase in revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2026 as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025, was primarily due to the three months ended March 31, 2025 including two months of revenues after the Closing Date, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2026 which includes three months of revenues. The Brigit segment revenues included increases of $24.5 million, $6.6 million and $4.6 million in subscription revenue, transfer fee revenue and marketplace revenue, respectively.
Gross Profit. Gross profit as a percentage of segment revenues was 88.6% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 87.4% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The increase was primarily due to mix-shift changes between subscriptions and fees product categories.
Operating Profit. Operating profit as a percentage of segment revenues was 27.4% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 27.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2025. Net advance losses expressed as a percentage of total cash advances originated were approximately 3.5% and 2.4% for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, respectively.
Please refer to Note 2 to our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for information about the acquisition of Brigit that was completed on January 31, 2025.
Mexico segment
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 31, | Change | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| (dollar amounts in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | $ | % | |||||||||||||||||||
| Revenues | $ | 21,764 | $ | 18,190 | $ | 3,574 | 19.6 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Gross profit | 15,241 | 12,997 | 2,244 | 17.3 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating (loss) profit | (92) | 1,223 | (1,315) | (107.5) | % | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Change in same store revenue(1)
|
1.4 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stores in same store revenue calculation | 124 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) See Key Metrics described above for additional information.
Revenues. Revenues were positively impacted by exchange rate fluctuations of approximately $3.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025. On a constant currency basis, revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2026 increased approximately $0.5 million, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Gross Profit. Gross profit was positively impacted by exchange rate fluctuations of approximately $2.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025. On a constant currency basis, gross profit for the three months ended March 31, 2026 increased by approximately $0.1 million as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025. Gross profit as a percentage of segment revenues was 70.0% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 71.5% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Operating Profit. Operating profit was minimally impacted by exchange rate fluctuations for the three months ended March 31, 2026, as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025. On a constant currency basis, operating profit for the three months ended March 31, 2026 decreased by approximately $1.3 million as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2025. Operating profit as a percentage of segment revenues decreased to (0.4)% for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to 6.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2025.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview. For the three months ended March 31, 2026, we generated $170.7 million in operating cash flow, used cash in the amount of $236.2 million for debt repayments, $23.1 million for dividends, $18.8 million for customer cash advance originations net of collections, and $16.0 million for capital expenditures, and had cash proceeds from indebtedness of $105.0 million. We ended the first quarter of 2026 with $98.4 million of cash and cash equivalents and outstanding indebtedness of $1.5 billion.
Analysis of Cash Flow. Cash provided by operating activities increased by $22.7 million to $170.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, from $148.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to an increase of approximately $53.0 million in cash provided by net earnings (net earnings less adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net cash provided by operating activities) and lower inventory purchases of approximately $14.1 million, net of a decrease of approximately $6.0 million of customer lease buyouts through early purchase options, lease charge-offs, and other merchandise losses, driven by lower inventory purchases in the Acima segment resulting from a 5.9% decrease in GMV for the three months ended March 31, 2026. These impacts were partially offset by a year-over-year increase of approximately $28.3 million in payments of outstanding inventory and trade payables primarily due to higher payments of outstanding inventory payables made for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Cash used in investing activities decreased by $261.7 million to $34.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to $295.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily due to payment of cash consideration for the acquisition of Brigit of $275.9 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, partially offset by higher investment in software development of $5.4 million and an increase of $8.5 million in net originations and collections of customer cash advances for the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Cash (used in) provided by financing activities was $(158.7) million for the three months ended March 31, 2026, compared to $194.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025. The increase in cash used in financing activities resulted from higher borrowings under the ABL Credit Facility of $354.0 million during the three months ended March 31, 2025, primarily used to facilitate the Brigit acquisition.
Liquidity Requirements. Our primary liquidity requirements are for rental merchandise purchases in our Acima and Rent-A-Center segments, which are impacted by consumer demand for our lease-to-own solutions, and customer advances in our Brigit segment. Other capital requirements include expenditures for technology and property assets, and debt service. Our primary source of liquidity has been cash provided by operations.
We generally utilize our ABL Credit Facility for the issuance of letters of credit to manage normal fluctuations in operational cash flow caused by the timing of cash payments relative to cash receipts, and to potentially fund strategic initiatives including acquisitions. In that regard, we may from time to time draw funds under the ABL Credit Facility for general corporate purposes. Amounts are drawn as needed due to the timing of cash flows and are generally paid down as cash is generated by our operating activities. We believe cash flow generated from operations and availability under our ABL Credit Facility will be sufficient to fund our operations during the next twelve months. At April 23, 2026, we had approximately $62.8 million in cash on hand and $301.6 million available under our ABL Credit Facility.
Merchandise Losses. Merchandise losses consist of the following:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | |||||||||
| Lease charge-offs | $ | 86,901 | $ | 81,905 | |||||||
|
Other merchandise losses(1)
|
7,309 | 5,560 | |||||||||
| Total merchandise losses | $ | 94,210 | $ | 87,465 | |||||||
(1)Other merchandise losses include unrepairable and missing merchandise, and loss/damage waiver claims.
Capital Expenditures. We make capital expenditures in order to maintain our existing operations, acquire new capital assets in new and acquired stores and invest in information technology. We spent $16.0 million and $10.6 million on capital expenditures during the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025, respectively. The increase of $5.4 million is primarily due to higher investment in software development.
Acquisitions and New Location Openings. The table below summarizes the store location activity for the three-month period ended March 31, 2026 for our Rent-A-Center and Mexico operating segments.
| Rent-A-Center | Mexico | Total | |||||||||||||||
| Locations at beginning of period | 2,075 | 136 | 2,211 | ||||||||||||||
| New location openings | - | 5 | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| Closed locations | |||||||||||||||||
|
Merged with existing locations
|
(1) | - | (1) | ||||||||||||||
|
Sold or closed with no surviving location(1)
|
(27) | - | (27) | ||||||||||||||
|
Locations at end of period(2)
|
2,047 | 141 | 2,188 | ||||||||||||||
(1) Includes closure of Rent-A-Center 26 franchisee store locations.
(2) Rent-A-Center includes 1,720 company-owned and 327 franchisee store locations
Senior Debt. On February 17, 2021, we entered into a credit agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, and lenders party thereto, that provides for a five-year asset-based revolving credit facility with commitments of $550 million and a letter of credit sublimit of $150 million, which commitments may be increased, at our option and under certain conditions, by up to an additional $125 million in the aggregate (as most recently amended on August 29, 2025, the "ABL Credit Facility"). Under the ABL Credit Facility, we may borrow only up to the lesser of the level of the then-current borrowing base and the aggregate amount of commitments under the ABL Credit Facility. The borrowing base is tied to the amount of eligible installment sales accounts, inventory and eligible lease contracts, reduced by certain reserves. The ABL Credit Facility bears interest at a fluctuating rate determined by reference to an adjusted Term SOFR rate plus an applicable margin of 1.50% to 2.00%, which, as of April 23, 2026, was 5.76%. A commitment fee equal to 0.250% to 0.375% of the unused portion of the ABL Credit Facility fluctuates dependent upon average utilization for the prior month as defined by a pricing grid included in the documentation governing the ABL Credit Facility. Loans under the ABL Credit Facility may be borrowed, repaid and re-borrowed until June 7, 2029 (subject to certain springing maturity provisions), at which time all amounts borrowed must be repaid.
The obligations under the ABL Credit Facility are guaranteed by us and certain of our material wholly owned domestic restricted subsidiaries, subject to certain exceptions. The obligations under the ABL Credit Facility and such guarantees are secured on a first-priority basis by all of our and our subsidiary guarantors' accounts, inventory, deposit accounts, securities accounts, cash and cash equivalents, rental agreements, general intangibles (other than equity interests in our subsidiaries), chattel paper, instruments, documents, letter of credit rights, commercial tort claims related to the foregoing and other related assets and all proceeds thereof related to the foregoing, subject to permitted liens and certain exceptions (such assets, collectively, the "ABL Priority Collateral") and a second-priority basis in substantially all other present and future tangible and intangible personal property of ours and the subsidiary guarantors, subject to certain exceptions.
On February 17, 2021, we also entered into a term loan credit agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, and lenders party thereto, that provides for a seven-year $875 million senior secured term loan facility (as most recently amended on August 19, 2025, the "Term Loan Facility"). Subject in each case to certain restrictions and conditions, we may add up to $625 million (plus additional amounts subject to the satisfaction of certain financial ratios) of incremental term loan facilities to the Term Loan Facility or utilize incremental capacity under the Term Loan Facility at any time by issuing or incurring incremental equivalent term debt. Interest on borrowings under the Term Loan Facility is payable at a fluctuating rate of interest determined by reference to the Term SOFR rate plus an applicable margin of 2.75%, subject to a 0.50% Term SOFR floor, which, as of April 23, 2026 was 6.43%.
Borrowings under the Term Loan Facility amortize in equal quarterly installments in an amount equal to 1.000% per annum of the original aggregate principal amount thereof, with the remaining balance due at final maturity on August 19, 2032 (subject to certain springing maturity provisions). The Term Loan Facility is secured by a first-priority security interest in substantially all of present and future tangible and intangible personal property of us and our subsidiary guarantors, other than the ABL Priority Collateral, and by a second-priority security interest in the ABL Priority Collateral, subject to certain exceptions. The obligations under the Term Loan Facility are guaranteed by us and our material wholly owned domestic restricted subsidiaries that also guarantee the ABL Credit Facility.
At April 23, 2026, we had outstanding borrowings of $870.6 million under the Term Loan Facility and available commitments of $301.6 million under our ABL Credit Facility, net of letters of credit.
See Note 5 of our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for additional information regarding our senior debt.
Senior Notes. On February 17, 2021, we issued $450 million in senior unsecured notes due February 15, 2029, at par value, bearing interest at 6.375% (the "Notes"). Interest on the Notes is payable in arrears on February 15 and August 15 of each year, beginning on August 15, 2021. We may redeem some or all of the Notes at any time for cash at the redemption prices set forth in the indenture governing the Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but not including, the redemption date. If we experience specific kinds of change in control, we will be required to offer to purchase the Notes at a price equal to 101% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest. See Note 6 of our condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for additional information regarding our senior notes.
Operating Leases. We lease space for all of our Rent-A-Center and Mexico stores under operating leases expiring at various times through 2036. In addition, we lease space for certain support facilities under operating leases expiring at various times through 2032. Most of our store leases are five-year leases and contain renewal options for additional periods ranging from three to five years at rental rates adjusted according to agreed-upon formulas. As of March 31, 2026, our total remaining obligation for existing store lease contracts was approximately $337.4 million.
We lease vehicles for all of our Rent-A-Center stores under operating leases with lease terms expiring twelve months after the start date of the lease. We classify these leases as short-term and have elected the short-term lease exemption for our vehicle leases, and have therefore excluded them from our operating lease right-of-use assets within our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. As of March 31, 2026, our total remaining minimum obligation for existing Rent-A-Center vehicle lease contracts was approximately $1.6 million.
We also lease vehicles for all of our Mexico stores which have terms expiring at various times through 2030 with rental rates adjusted periodically for inflation. As of March 31, 2026, our total remaining obligation for existing Mexico vehicle lease contracts was approximately $2.9 million.
Uncertain Tax Position. As of March 31, 2026, we have recorded $1.0 million in uncertain tax positions. Although these positions represent a potential future cash liability to us, the amounts and timing of such payments are uncertain.
Seasonality. Our revenue mix in our lease-to-own businesses is moderately seasonal, with the first quarter of each fiscal year generally providing higher sales than any other quarter during a fiscal year. Generally, our customers will more frequently exercise the early purchase option on their existing lease purchase agreements in our Acima and Rent-A-Center segments or purchase pre-leased merchandise off the showroom floor in our Rent-A-Center segment during the first quarter of each fiscal year, primarily due to the receipt of federal income tax refunds. In contrast, our cash expenditures for our merchandise purchases for the fiscal year are generally the highest beginning in the latter part of the third quarter through the fourth quarter, primarily as a result of holiday promotions that lead to increased demand for our lease-to-own offerings.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
In November 2024, the FASB issued ASU 2024-03, Income Statement - Reporting Comprehensive Income - Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40): Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses, which requires new tabular disclosures disaggregating prescribed expense categories within relevant income statement captions. In January 2025, the FASB issued ASU 2025-01, which clarifies the effective date for ASU No. 2024-03. The adoption of ASU 2024-03 will be required for us for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2026 and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027. We are currently in the preliminary stages of assessing this ASU and the impact it will have on our financial statements following adoption but expect it will result in increased disclosure.
In September 2025, the FASB issued ASU 2025-06, Intangibles - Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40), which amends the existing standard that refers to various stages of a software development. Under the new standard, entities will start capitalizing eligible costs when management has authorized and committed to funding the software project, and it is probable that the project will be completed and the software will be used to perform the function intended. The adoption of ASU 2025-06 will be required for us for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027 and interim reporting periods within those annual reporting periods. We are in the preliminary stages of assessing this ASU and the impact it will have on our financial statements following adoption.
In December 2025, the FASB issued ASU 2025-11, Interim Reporting (Topic 270): Narrow-Scope Improvements, which clarifies interim disclosure requirements and the applicability of Topic 270. The new standard specifies the types of interim reporting and the form and content of interim financial statements, adds a comprehensive list of required interim disclosures and includes a disclosure principle that requires entities to disclose events since the end of the last annual reporting period that have a material impact on the entity. The adoption of ASU 2025-11 will be required for us for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027 and interim reporting periods within those annual reporting periods. We are in the preliminary stages of assessing this ASU and the impact, if any, it will have on our disclosures within our interim financial statements filed on our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.
From time to time, new accounting pronouncements are issued by the FASB or other standards setting bodies that we adopt as of the specified effective date. As of March 31, 2026, unless otherwise discussed, we believe the impact of any other recently issued standards that are not yet effective are either not applicable to us at this time, or will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements upon adoption.
Upbound Group Inc. published this content on May 01, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via EDGAR on May 01, 2026 at 13:21 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]