Sallie Mae posts $0.19 loss per share, cuts annual outlook; Boyd revenue declines
Key Facts
Sallie Mae reported a diluted loss of $0.19 per share in the third quarter of 2026 and cut its annual earnings outlook, according to its quarterly earnings disclosures. The loss compared with diluted earnings of $0.29 per share in the second quarter of the same year, marking a quarterly swing to a loss. A year earlier, the company had reported diluted earnings of $0.63 per share in the third quarter of 2025. The reversal coincided with an expansion in new private education loans, which totaled about $3.4 billion in the third quarter. Sallie Mae said in its earnings presentation that new loans grew 15% from the same period a year earlier. The company thus recorded its largest quarterly loan origination volume ever, alongside higher provisions for credit losses and non-interest expenses.
Sallie Mae's provisions for credit losses rose to $214 million in the third quarter, according to its earnings presentation. Those provisions had totaled $126 million in the second quarter of 2026 before rising in the current quarter. On an annual basis, the company compared the current provisions with $179 million in the third quarter of 2025. Total non-interest expenses also rose to $221 million from $195 million in the previous quarter. Comparable expenses a year earlier were $180 million, leaving these expenses higher on both a quarterly and annual basis. In explaining the pressures on net charge-offs, Sallie Mae cited "misaligned third-party debt settlement practices and the related shifts in our recovery strategies."
In separate results, Boyd Gaming said in its statement issued on October 22 that adjusted earnings per share were $1.67 in the third quarter of 2026. The company reported revenue of $990.5 million for the period, according to the earnings statement. Boyd compared that level with revenue of $1.0 billion in the third quarter of 2025, marking a year-on-year decline. Total adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent were $319.6 million in the third quarter. The results came as the company's Las Vegas operations faced pressure from weaker tourism demand and construction-related disruption.
Boyd said in its statement that its businesses serving Las Vegas visitors experienced "increasing softness," attributing the pressure to weaker tourism demand. The company singled out the Orleans among the properties affected by that weaker demand. It also said construction at Suncoast disrupted operations there during the period. In its online segment, Boyd reported double-digit growth in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent. The company attributed the segment's earnings growth to strength in its online casino business.
On capital returns to shareholders, Boyd repurchased $164 million of shares in the third quarter of 2026, according to its statement. At the end of September, $387 million remained available under the company's share repurchase authorization. That balance represents the authorization remaining after repurchases completed during the period. On its balance sheet at the end of September 2026, Boyd reported cash on hand of $297.2 million. Total debt at the end of the same period was $2.7 billion, according to the figures the company released with its third-quarter results.
For the full year 2026, Sallie Mae now expects diluted earnings per share of $1.95–2.05, according to the guidance slide in its third-quarter earnings presentation. That range replaces its previous forecast of $3.10–3.20 per share, announced in its second-quarter earnings presentation for the same year. The company also raised its forecast for annual net charge-offs to a range of $400 million to $420 million. The previous range for this item was $365 million to $385 million, according to the guidance accompanying its second-quarter results. As part of its loss mitigation strategies, Sallie Mae said it had temporarily halted most recovery loan sales. It said the approach aims to strengthen its control over post-default collections. The company announced that a replay of the earnings call would be available on its investor website about two hours after the call ended.