Upbound Group, Inc.

What they do

Upbound operates lease-to-own transactions in the United States, Puerto Rico and Mexico through its Acima and Rent-A-Center segments. Acima offers lease-to-own solutions through third-party retailers in stores and online, while Rent-A-Center provides a fully integrated customer experience through e-commerce and brick-and-mortar locations. The company also operates Brigit, a financial health technology platform acquired on January 31, 2025, which offers earned wage access, credit building, and identity protection.

Revenue drivers

• Rent-A-Center segment — Generates revenue by leasing durable goods to consumers through company-owned stores and e-commerce, with the product often rented multiple times before ownership transfer. In Q2 2026, revenue was $466 million, and the segment achieved its third consecutive quarter of same-store sales growth.
• Acima segment — Provides lease-to-own solutions through third-party retailers in stores and online, generally purchasing merchandise at retail prices. In Q2 2026, revenue was $604 million, with lease charge-off rate improving 50 basis points to 8.8% and EBITDA margin expanding 117 basis points to 16.2%.
• Brigit segment — Offers financial health services including earned wage access, credit building, and identity protection through subscription accounts. In Q2 2026, revenue increased 37% year-over-year to $71 million, driven by approximately 30% growth in paying subscribers to 1.7 million and a 6.3% increase in ARPU to $14.30.

Recent performance

For Q2 2026, Upbound reported consolidated revenue of approximately $1.2 billion, with all results within guided ranges. Brigit revenue grew 37% year-over-year to $71 million, Acima revenue declined 2.5% to $604 million but saw improved portfolio quality, and Rent-A-Center revenue was $466 million with same-store sales up approximately 160 basis points. Net cash provided by operating activities was approximately $123 million, and free cash flow was $84 million. Full-year 2025 revenue was $4.70 billion with net income of $73.0 million, compared to 2024 revenue of $4.32 billion and net income of $124.0 million.

Strategy

Upbound completed the acquisition of Brigit on January 31, 2025, to expand into financial health technology and offer products beyond lease-to-own. The company focuses on growing its Acima segment through retailer partnerships and virtual solutions, and on improving Rent-A-Center's same-store sales and customer experience through e-commerce and brick-and-mortar integration. Management continues to invest in proprietary algorithms and customer decisioning tools to manage merchandise losses. The company also pursues refranchising opportunities and potential acquisitions to drive growth.

Risks

• Macroeconomic sensitivity — The success of each segment depends on consumer demand, spending and payment behaviors, which are outside the company's control and can be affected by inflation, unemployment, and credit availability.
• Brigit integration and benefits — Costs or disruptions related to integrating Brigit operations may be greater than expected, and anticipated benefits from the acquisition may not be fully realized or may take longer to achieve.
• Supply chain and product sourcing — Disruptions in the lease-to-own supply chain or distribution of merchandise could materially and adversely affect the business, particularly for Rent-A-Center's inventory management.
• Algorithm and customer decisioning — Proprietary algorithms and customer decisioning tools used to approve customers are subject to unexpected changes in behavior caused by macroeconomic conditions, which could lead to higher merchandise losses.

Outlook

For full-year 2026, management narrowed the consolidated revenue range to $4.70–$4.85 billion and reaffirmed Adjusted EBITDA of $500–$535 million and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $4.00–$4.35. For Q3 2026, the company expects consolidated revenue of $1.05–$1.15 billion, Adjusted EBITDA of $105–$115 million, and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.85–$0.95.