Sonic Automotive (SAH) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 revenue was $3,988.8M, up 0.4% YoY, and gross profit reached a record $617.5M; net income fell 12% to $41.1M and adjusted diluted EPS was $1.30, down 8%.

• EchoPark and Powersports growth offset Franchised Dealerships declines; higher SG&A weighed on results as customer-related costs and strategic investments pressured expense leverage.

Financial highlights

• Operating income was $112.4M, down 8%, and pretax income was $57.5M, down 19%; adjusted EBITDA was $134.4M, down 10%.

• Consolidated SG&A was $466.8M, up 3%; reported SG&A was 75.6% of gross profit and adjusted SG&A was 75.4%, versus 72.8% a year earlier.

• Nine-month revenue rose 3% to $11,611.3M and net income reached $159.4M versus $71.8M; prior-year results included $173.8M of impairment charges.

• Retail used-vehicle revenue rose 10% to $1,381.2M and gross profit increased 6% to $47.9M; GPU fell 4% to $986. Consolidated fixed-operations gross profit rose 2%.

Outlook and guidance

• FY 2026 EchoPark adjusted EBITDA guidance increased to $42M–$45M; used retail unit growth is expected at 13.5%–15%, with total GPU of $3,150–$3,250 per unit.

• FY 2026 guidance: franchised new-vehicle GPU of $3,050–$3,100, used-vehicle GPU of $1,450–$1,500, and same-store fixed-operations gross profit growth of 2%–3%.

• EchoPark expects Q4 adjusted EBITDA of $2M–$4M, including $5M–$7M of incremental brand advertising; FY Powersports adjusted EBITDA guidance is $16M–$17M, with Q4 at $1M–$2M.

• FY consolidated adjusted SG&A guidance remains 73%–74% of gross profit; management expects fixed-operations growth near 3% in Q4 and improvement into 2027.