Regional Management Rebounds From Second-Quarter Earnings Drop

The Tip Desk · October 28, 2026 · 4 min read

The consumer lender posted record revenue of $178.8 million and net income of $15.1 million, or $1.61 a share, as bank-partnership fees and a lower credit-loss rate lifted the quarter.

Regional Management Corp. (RM), a diversified consumer finance company, reported net income of $15.1 million, or $1.61 a share, for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, up 5.3% and 13.4% from a year earlier. That result reversed a sequential drop to $8.2 million, or $0.85 a share, in the second quarter. President and Chief Executive Officer Lakhbir S. Lamba said the quarter reflected steady execution against priorities outlined in July, including portfolio growth in line with expectations and record revenue supported by fee income from the company’s bank partnership.

Total revenue reached a record $178.8 million, up 8.0% from the year-ago quarter. Other income was $12.3 million, up 126.8% from $5.4 million a year earlier. Interest and fee income was $155.7 million. Insurance income, net, was $10.7 million.

The annualized total revenue yield was 32.9%, up 110 basis points sequentially, which the company said was driven by bank-partnership fee income and seasonality. Compared with the year-ago quarter, total revenue yield decreased 20 basis points as lower interest and fee yield and lower insurance income were largely offset by about 120 basis points of fee income from bank-partnership originations. Interest and fee yield was 28.7%, down 100 basis points from 29.7% a year earlier, primarily due to a product-mix shift toward larger and auto-secured loans that carry lower yields and lower loss rates, as well as pricing changes and the impact of higher credit losses on revenue.

Net finance receivables were $2.2 billion at September 30, up 7.6% from the year-ago period and $61.7 million from June 30. Large loans were $1.7 billion, or 78.8% of the book. Auto-secured net finance receivables were $345.0 million, up 25.2% from a year earlier and 15.6% of the portfolio. Small loans were $467.9 million, or 21.2% of the book. Total originations were $530.3 million, up 5.3% sequentially and 1.5% from the year-ago quarter. Large-loan originations rose 11.8% from a year earlier; small-loan originations fell 21.9%, reflecting tighter underwriting in higher-risk segments.

The net credit loss rate was 10.9%, a 130-basis-point sequential improvement from 12.2% in the second quarter. The rate remained 70 basis points above 10.2% a year earlier. The company said the year-over-year increase was concentrated in specific segments, primarily loans originated in 2025, with the digital affiliate channel the largest driver. The provision for credit losses was $66.2 million, up 9.4% from the year-ago quarter, driven by higher net credit losses and partially offset by a smaller reserve build. The allowance for credit losses was $230.8 million, or 10.4% of net finance receivables.

Lamba said the company tightened underwriting in segments that underperformed, began implementing enhanced fraud controls across all channels, and would complete a rollout of a new proprietary origination scorecard in the fourth quarter. Liz Canini was scheduled to join in early November as Chief Credit Risk Officer. Thirty-plus-day contractual delinquencies were $165.8 million, or 7.5% of net finance receivables, up 50 basis points both sequentially and year-over-year. The 30-plus-day delinquency rate on the auto-secured portfolio was 2.2%.

General and administrative expenses were $68.6 million. The annualized operating expense ratio was 12.6%, an improvement of 20 basis points from 12.8% a year earlier, despite about 40 basis points of upfront origination costs associated with bank-partnership loans. The Column N.A. partnership, launched in March 2026, had originated more than $160 million in loans and was extended to North Carolina, Louisiana, and Missouri after Texas. The company continues to expect substantially all of its branch network to operate under the program by the end of 2027.

The company repurchased 265,645 shares at a weighted-average price of $37.64 in the third quarter. The board declared a dividend of $0.30 a share for the fourth quarter, payable December 16, 2026.