Bread Financial Provides Performance Update for September 2026
Average credit card and other loans grew year over year in both September and the three months ended September 30.
Sentiment and the balance of points
Rhea-AI Sentiment reads the wording of the document, how positive or negative its language is on a 1 to 5 scale. The balance of points shown with the takes weighs what the document actually discloses, so the two can disagree, for example when a trial that missed its main goal is described in upbeat language.
Rhea-AI Summary
Bread Financial (NYSE: BFH) reported September 2026 credit performance, with its delinquency rate falling to 5.57% from a year earlier. The rate was 6.04% on September 30, 2025; principal overdue by at least 30 days declined to $923 million from $963 million.
September net principal losses were $92 million, with a 5.99% net principal loss rate. For the three months ended September 30, losses totaled $300 million and the loss rate was 6.40%. Average credit card and other loans rose 6.4% year over year to $18,740 million for September and 5.7% to $18,591 million for the quarter. End-of-period credit card and other loans totaled $18,850 million. Principal loan balances reached $16,584 million, versus $15,928 million a year earlier.
How this balance works
Rhea-AI gives every point it takes from this document a weight. Minor counts 1, Moderate 3 and Major 9, so one Major point outweighs several Minor ones. The bar adds up the weights on each side, and when neither side holds more than 65% of the total the balance reads Mixed.
It reads the document as published, with the same rules for every company, and it does not look at what the market expected or at how the stock traded, so a point can be objectively good on a day the stock falls.
Rhea-AI Sentiment measures something else, the tone of the wording.
Positive
- Moderate pointDelinquency rate fell to 5.57% on September 30, 2026, from 6.04% a year earlier.
- Moderate pointQuarterly average loans increased 5.7% year over year to $18,591 million for the three months ended September 30, 2026.
- Moderate pointPrincipal loan balances increased to $16,584 million on September 30, 2026, from $15,928 million a year earlier.
- Minor pointPrincipal overdue at least 30 days declined to $923 million from $963 million a year earlier.
- Minor pointSeptember average loans increased 6.4% year over year to $18,740 million.
Negative
- Moderate pointQuarterly net principal losses totaled $300 million, with a 6.40% loss rate for the three months ended September 30, 2026.
- Minor pointSeptember net principal losses totaled $92 million, with a 5.99% loss rate.
Key Figures
- Average loans
- $18,740 million
- Month ended September 30, 2026
- Year-over-year average loan change
- 6.4%
- Month ended September 30, 2026
- Net principal losses
- $92 million
- Month ended September 30, 2026
- Net principal loss rate
- 5.99%
- Month ended September 30, 2026
- Net principal loss rate
- 6.40%
- Three months ended September 30, 2026
- Delinquency rate
- 5.57% vs. 6.04%
- As of September 30, 2026 vs. September 30, 2025
- 30+ day delinquencies
- $923 million vs. $963 million
- As of September 30, 2026 vs. September 30, 2025
Historical Context
-
August loss and delinquency rates improved year over year as average loans increased.
24h Move is the share-price change in the day after each event; other market factors may also have contributed.
Key Terms
net principal loss rate financial
delinquency rate financial
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: BFH), a tech-forward financial services company that provides simple, personalized payment, lending, and saving solutions to millions of U.S. consumers, provided a performance update. The following tables present the Company’s Net principal loss rate and Delinquency rate for the periods indicated:
| For the month ended September 30, 2026 | For the three months ended September 30, 2026 | ||||||
| (dollars in millions) | |||||||
| End-of-period credit card and other loans | $ | 18,850 | $ | 18,850 | |||
| Average credit card and other loans | $ | 18,740 | $ | 18,591 | |||
| Year-over-year change in average credit card and other loans | 6.4 | % | 5.7 | % | |||
| Net principal losses | $ | 92 | $ | 300 | |||
| Net principal loss rate | 5.99 | % | 6.40 | % | |||
| As of September 30, 2026 | As of September 30, 2025 | ||||||
| (dollars in millions) | |||||||
| 30 days + delinquencies – principal | $ | 923 | $ | 963 | |||
| Period ended credit card and other loans – principal | $ | 16,584 | $ | 15,928 | |||
| Delinquency rate | 5.57 | % | 6.04 | % | |||
About Bread Financial®
Bread Financial®(NYSE: BFH) is a tech-forward financial services company that provides simple, personalized payment, lending and saving solutions to millions of U.S. consumers. Our payment solutions deliver growth for some of the most recognized brands in travel and entertainment, specialty apparel, health and beauty, jewelry, sporting goods, technology and electronics, as well as home and furniture through our co-brand and private label credit cards and pay-over-time products providing choice and value to our shared customers. Additionally, we offer Bread Financial general purpose credit cards and saving products that empower our customers and their passions for a better life.
Bread Financial proudly marks 30 years of success in 2026. To learn more about our global associates, our performance and our sustainability progress, visit breadfinancial.com or follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements give our expectations or forecasts of future events and can generally be identified by the use of words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “project,” “plan,” “likely,” “may,” “should” or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements that describe our business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements we make regarding, and the guidance we give with respect to, our anticipated operating or financial results, future financial performance and outlook, future dividend declarations, and future economic conditions.
We believe that our expectations are based on reasonable assumptions. Forward-looking statements, however, are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict and, in many cases, beyond our control. Accordingly, our actual results could differ materially from the projections, anticipated results or other expectations expressed in this release, and no assurances can be given that our expectations will prove to have been correct. Factors that could cause the outcomes to differ materially include, but are not limited to, the following: macroeconomic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, labor market conditions, financial and capital market conditions, recessionary pressures or concerns over a prolonged economic slowdown, and the related impact on consumer spending behavior, payments, debt levels, savings rates and other behaviors; domestic and international political events and conditions, including significant shifts in trade policy, such as changes to, or the imposition of, tariffs and/or trade barriers and consequently any economic impacts, volatility, uncertainty and geopolitical instability resulting therefrom, as well as ongoing wars and military conflicts, and international tensions or hostilities; local or global public health issues, climate-related events, impacts to the power grid, and natural disasters; future credit performance, including the level of future delinquency and charge-off rates; loss of, or reduction in demand for services and/or products from, significant brand partners or customers in the highly competitive markets in which we operate, including competition from new and non-traditional competitors, such as financial technology companies, and with respect to new products, services and technologies, such as the emergence or increase in popularity of agentic commerce, digital payment platforms and currencies and other alternative payment and deposit solutions; the concentration of our business in U.S. consumer credit; inaccuracies in the models and estimates on which we rely, including our credit risk management models and the amount of our Allowance for credit losses; the inability to realize the intended benefits of acquisitions, dispositions and other strategic initiatives; our level of indebtedness and ability to access financial or capital markets; pending and future federal and state legislation, executive action, regulation, supervisory guidance, and regulatory and legal actions, including, but not limited to, those related to financial regulatory reform and consumer financial services practices, as well as any such actions that would place limits on credit card interest rates or late fees, interchange fees or other charges; failures or breaches in our operational or security systems, including as a result of cyberattacks, unanticipated impacts from technology modernization projects or otherwise; and any liability or other adverse impacts arising out of or related to the spinoff of our former LoyaltyOne segment or the bankruptcy filings of Loyalty Ventures Inc. (LVI) and certain of its subsidiaries, including the pending litigation against us in connection with the spinoff. The foregoing factors, along with other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements, are described in greater detail under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year, which may be updated in Item 1A of, or elsewhere in, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed for periods subsequent to such Form 10-K. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and we undertake no obligation, other than as required by applicable law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, subsequent events, anticipated or unanticipated circumstances or otherwise.
Contacts
Brian Vereb — Investor Relations
Brian.Vereb@breadfinancial.com
Susan Haugen — Investor Relations
Susan.Haugen@breadfinancial.com
Rachel Stultz — Media
Rachel.Stultz@breadfinancial.com
FAQ
AI-generated questions and answers. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
What was Bread Financial's delinquency rate in September 2026?
Bread Financial's delinquency rate was 5.57% as of September 30, 2026, compared with 6.04% a year earlier. Principal overdue by at least 30 days totaled $923 million, versus $963 million on September 30, 2025.
What were Bread Financial's net principal losses for September 2026?
Bread Financial recorded $92 million in net principal losses for September 2026, with a 5.99% net principal loss rate. For the three months ended September 30, 2026, net principal losses totaled $300 million and the loss rate was 6.40%.