LendingTree Posts $72.4 Million Loss On $98.8 Million Goodwill Charge Despite 12% Revenue Growth
Insurance revenue rose 15% and the company repaid $60 million of debt, while a non-cash writedown drove the third-quarter loss.
LendingTree's third-quarter revenue rose 12% to $343.6 million, but a $98.8 million non-cash goodwill impairment turned the quarter into a net loss of $72.4 million, or $5.15 per diluted share, the company said Tuesday in an 8-K filing. A year earlier it earned $10.2 million.
Insurance carries the quarter
LendingTree runs an online marketplace where consumers compare loans, credit cards and insurance quotes; it is paid fees by a network of approximately 770 partners. All three segments grew, and CEO Scott Peyree called it the tenth straight quarter of double-digit revenue growth.
Insurance revenue rose 15% to $234.9 million, and segment profit climbed 14% to $54.2 million. Home revenue rose 9% to $41.5 million with profit up 5% to $12.4 million; Home Equity revenue rose 20% to $34.0 million.
Consumer was the soft spot. Revenue edged up 2% to $67.2 million, while segment profit fell 16% to $29.6 million.
Adjusted EBITDA, the company's adjusted earnings measure, was $39.6 million against $39.8 million a year earlier. Variable marketing margin, revenue minus advertising and similar variable costs, rose 2% to $94.9 million.
Debt paydown and a first buyback since 2022
CFO Jason Bengel said the company used excess cash to voluntarily repay $60 million of long-term debt during the quarter. He said LendingTree intends to repurchase shares in the fourth quarter "for the first time since 1Q22."
Interest expense fell to $9.1 million from $17.9 million a year earlier. Goodwill on the balance sheet stood at $282.7 million at September 30, down from $381.5 million at the end of 2025.
Peyree said the company rolled out voice AI services, AI overviews on offer pages and controlled distribution, which lets a consumer shop in stages so multiple lenders or carriers do not all call at once.
Updated outlook
LendingTree now expects full-year 2026 revenue of $1.30 billion to $1.31 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $151 million to $153 million. Bengel said that puts revenue and adjusted EBITDA growth for the year at 17% and 14%, respectively, at the midpoint.
For the fourth quarter, the company guides to revenue of $315 million to $325 million and adjusted EBITDA of $34 million to $36 million.
Management scheduled a conference call for 4:30 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday to discuss the results.
Sources
- 8-K Filing — LendingTree, Inc. (TREE) — SEC EDGAR
- Exhibit tree-93026xer.htm — LendingTree, Inc. 8-K exhibit — SEC EDGAR
