KinderCare Learning Companies (KLC) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 revenue was $665.3M, down 1.7% YoY, and Adjusted EBITDA was $42.5M versus $66.4M; impairment charges drove an $85.0M net loss.

• Enrollment trends improved after back-to-school, narrowing the YoY deficit from over 5% to 3%, though enrollment remained below prior-year levels.

• Total centers and sites reached 2,764, up 1.1% YoY; Q3 included six openings and three acquisitions.

Financial highlights

• Q3 revenue was $665.3M versus $676.8M; Adjusted EBITDA was $42.5M versus $66.4M, down 35.9%.

• Net loss was $85.0M versus net income of $4.6M; operating loss was $75.5M versus operating income of $26.3M.

• Q3 impairment losses were $86.8M, including $71.4M of goodwill impairment; adjusted net loss was $3.0M, or $0.03/share, versus adjusted net income of $15.3M, or $0.13/share.

• Nine-month revenue was $2.035B versus $2.045B; net loss was $383.6M and Adjusted EBITDA was $157.6M versus $232.4M.

• Nine-month operating cash flow was $109.8M versus $234.3M; free cash flow was $20.1M versus $138.4M.

Outlook and guidance

• FY26 guidance: revenue of $2.64B–$2.66B, Adjusted EBITDA of $190M–$195M, and adjusted EPS of $0.02–$0.04.

• Assumptions include occupancy down ~2.5%, tuition up ~2.5%, and revenue contributions of ~1% from B2B/Champions and ~0.5% each from new centers and acquisitions.

• Closures are expected to reduce FY26 revenue by ~$32M and Adjusted EBITDA by ~$3.5M; projected occupancy benefit is 150 bps.

• FY26 free cash flow is expected below $10M, including optimization cash costs; CapEx is guided to $120M–$125M.