America’s Car-Mart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRMT) on Thursday reported financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2026, posting a loss per share of $2.71. Adjusted loss per share was 79 cents, missing the 49 cents loss estimate, while sales of $350.192 million beat the $331.032 million estimate.
Total revenue was $350.2 million, up 0.8% from a year earlier, when results included a $13.2 million one-time benefit tied to a change in service contract revenue recognition. Excluding the prior-year benefit, the company stated that revenue on an adjusted basis would have increased 4.8% year-over-year.
Sales volumes fell 1.1% to 13,637 units, while credit applications rose 14.6%. Accounts over 30 days past due improved to 3.14% at quarter end from 3.76% in the prior quarter, and total collections increased 4.6% to $181.7 million.
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Gross margin was 37.5%, down 190 basis points, and the company noted that the prior-year quarter included a 290-basis-point benefit from a one-time service contract accounting change.
SG&A as a percentage of sales was 20.0%, or 18.8% on an adjusted (non-GAAP) basis, excluding one-time charges.
Net charge-offs as a percent of average finance receivables were 7.0% versus 6.6% a year earlier. The allowance for credit losses was 24.19% at Oct. 31, 2025, up from 23.35% sequentially and down from 24.72% a year earlier, while provision for credit losses was $119.1 million compared with $99.5 million in the prior-year quarter.
Total cash, including restricted cash, increased to $251.0 million as of October 31, 2025, from $124.5 million as of April 30, 2025. Debt, net of total cash, decreased to $646.0 million from $652.2 million.
President and CEO Doug Campbell said, "Our second quarter financial results reflect the continued progress we are making to transform our business for the future, even as we navigate a fluid operating backdrop. We are proactively repositioning America’s Car-Mart by investing in our infrastructure, optimizing our platform, and improving our capital structure."
The company said LOS V2, deployed in May 2025, provides "a predictive scorecard and the enablement of risk-based pricing," and it "continued to see a meaningful shift towards the higher ranked customers with over 12% more customers booked in ranks 4-7."
The company stated that it continues to monitor external factors that may affect its customer base. In its outlook, the company said it remains focused on "optimizing the cost structure, strengthening credit performance through disciplined underwriting, and completing the capital structure transformation," while citing "persistent inflation," "potential government policy changes that could affect SNAP beneficiaries and other assistance programs," and "uncertainty surrounding the recent government shutdown and potential impacts to government assistance programs in calendar year 2026."
Elevated Short Interest
The company has 1.76 million shares sold short, representing 30.15% of its 5.85 million-share public float, a significantly high short-interest level that suggests many traders are betting against the stock.
Price Action: CRMT shares are trading 5.91% higher at $24.75 at the last check on Thursday.
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