{
  "id": 17087463,
  "title": "Earnings call transcript: Sonic Automotive misses Q3 2026 EPS forecast as shares fall",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/29/earnings-call-transcript-sonic-automotive-misses-q3-2026-eps-forecast",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-29T16:22:21.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Investing.com",
    "slug": "investing-com",
    "url": "https://www.investing.com/news/transcripts/earnings-call-transcript-sonic-automotive-misses-q3-2026-eps-forecast-as-shares-fall-93CH-4984740"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Sonic Automotive delivered a third-quarter 2026 earnings report that fell short of Wall Street expectations, with adjusted earnings per share (EPS) at $1.30, missing the forecasted $1.69. Despite this, the company reported record revenue of $4.0 billion and record gross profit of $617.5 million. However, revenue and same-store franchise revenue fell short of forecasts, with franchise revenue down 3% year-over-year and same-store revenue declining 2%. Fixed operations gross profit reached a record $265.4 million, while EchoPark and Powersports both showed record or near-record results. The company attributed the earnings miss to higher SG&A costs, including loaner-car expenses, gas inflation, and AI-related spending. Sonic's shares fell 2.98% to $61.24 in premarket trading following the report. Despite the earnings miss, the stock trades at a low P/E ratio of 9.79 and a PEG ratio of 0.25, suggesting potential value relative to its growth prospects. The company expects modest same-store gross profit growth in the franchise business, with fixed operations growth around 3% or slightly better, and plans for further EchoPark store openings and marketing campaigns.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}