$SCI · SERVICE CORP INTERNATIONAL
Service Corporation International reported Q3 2026 results with GAAP EPS of $1.03 (up 24% YoY) and adjusted EPS of $0.97 (up 11% YoY) on revenue of $1.107B. The company issued Q4 adjusted EPS guidance of $1.10–$1.20, implying full-year adjusted EPS of $3.94–$4.04, while confirming full-year adjusted operating cash flow guidance midpoint of $1,085M.
- Q3 GAAP EPS of $1.03 vs $0.83 YoY, adjusted EPS of $0.97 vs $0.87 YoY
- Q3 revenue of $1.107B, up 5% YoY from $1.058B
- Q4 adjusted EPS guidance of $1.10–$1.20, implying full-year $3.94–$4.04
- Comparable funeral preneed sales production up 6%, cemetery preneed sales up 5%
- Year-to-date shareholder returns of $464M via dividends and buybacks; shares outstanding down to 137.2M from 141.4M
Extended-hours trading shows SCI at $78.31, down 4.88% from the $82.33 regular close. The Q4 adjusted EPS guide of $1.10–$1.20 signals margin pressure from higher healthcare, selling compensation, and advertising costs, outweighing the Q3 beat.
The 4.9% after-hours selloff reflects a guidance disappointment from North America's largest deathcare provider, as cost inflation and volume softness overshadow strong preneed sales momentum.
SCI's preneed sales production growth (funeral +6%, cemetery +5%) continues to build a high-margin backlog, but the timing mismatch between sales and revenue recognition is compressing current-period cemetery margins — a dynamic unique to the deathcare industry's deferred-revenue model.
Management flagged lower funeral volumes than originally anticipated, plus elevated healthcare costs, selling compensation, and advertising/marketing spend that will persist into Q4. Cemetery gross margins are under near-term pressure as recognized preneed property revenue lags sales production.