Goosehead Insurance, Inc. Releases Preliminary Third Quarter 2026 Results
Previously issued financial statements require restatement, while full-year revenue and written-premium growth guidance remains unchanged.
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
Goosehead Insurance (NASDAQ: GSHD) reported preliminary third-quarter 2026 revenue growth of approximately 17% at the midpoint of its estimated range.
Revenue was estimated at $108.8 million to $110.8 million, reflecting preliminary restatement effects. Core Revenue, a non-GAAP measure of insurance-policy sales revenue, rose 13% to $94.7 million. Written premiums increased 11% to $1.31 billion, and policies in force grew 14% to approximately 2.1 million. Goosehead reaffirmed expected 2026 organic revenue growth of 12%–19% and written-premium growth of 12%–20%.
The company delayed its full earnings release and will restate financial statements covering 2023–2025 and early 2026. Corrections concern customer-contract acquisition costs and franchise-fee presentation. The affected statements should no longer be relied upon. Preliminary results remain subject to completion of the restatement and financial close.
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.
Hollow bars mark forward-looking points. How the balance works
Positive
- Moderate pointPreliminary Q3 revenue estimated at $108.8 million–$110.8 million, up approximately 17% at midpoint year over year.
- Moderate pointQ3 non-GAAP Core Revenue increased 13% to $94.7 million from $83.9 million a year earlier.
- Moderate pointQ3 written premiums increased 11% to $1.31 billion year over year.
- Moderate pointPolicies in force grew 14% to approximately 2.1 million year over year.
- Minor pointCorporate agent headcount increased 9% to 568 year over year.
5 minor points
- Minor pointFranchise producers increased 7% to 2,272 year over year.
- Minor point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Reaffirmed 2026 outlook expects 12%–19% organic revenue growth, considering expected restatement effects.
- Minor point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Reaffirmed 2026 written-premium outlook expects 12%–20% growth.
- Minor pointCash and cash equivalents totaled $32.8 million at September 30, 2026.
- Minor pointShare repurchase authorization had $144.6 million remaining at September 30, 2026.
Negative
- Major pointAffected annual 2023–2025 and interim financial statements through June 2026 should no longer be relied upon.
- Moderate pointFull earnings release is delayed while financial statements require restatement.
- Minor point. Forward-looking: it has not happened yet and may not happen.Preliminary results are unaudited and unreviewed; actual results and restatement effects could differ materially.
- Minor pointOutstanding notes payable totaled $322.3 million at September 30, 2026.
- Minor pointCredit line had $26.0 million drawn out of $75.0 million at September 30, 2026.
4 minor points
- Minor pointQ3 initial franchise fees fell to $1.220 million from $1.380 million a year earlier.
- Minor pointQ3 interest income fell to $80,000 from $162,000 a year earlier.
- Minor pointQ3 other franchise revenues fell to $356,000 from $477,000 a year earlier.
- Minor pointNine-month renewal commissions fell to $59.083 million from $59.742 million a year earlier.
News Explained
The contract-cost correction lifts reported operating income, but the franchise-fee reclassification does not change operating income, net income, or cash flows.
The restatement is still pending; on a preliminary basis, the customer-contract correction raises reported operating income, while the franchise-fee correction raises reported revenue and expenses equally.
For qualifying costs to obtain customer contracts, Goosehead had expensed them when incurred; it expects compensation and benefits expense to fall and operating income to rise by
The franchise-fee correction increases franchise revenue and general and administrative expenses by equal amounts—
Goosehead plans to file a Form 10-K/A restating annual and interim periods through 2025 and amended Form 10-Qs for the quarters ended
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
WESTLAKE, Texas, Nov. 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Goosehead Insurance, Inc. (“Goosehead” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: GSHD), a rapidly growing independent personal lines insurance agency, today announced preliminary results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, and reaffirmed its full year 2026 guidance. The Company also announced that it will be delaying its full earnings release and restating certain prior period financial statements to correct departures from GAAP related to those periods. See the “Restatement of Financial Results” section below for additional information.
“We delivered strong third quarter results, with total revenue up approximately
Preliminary Third Quarter 2026 Results*
- Total Revenues grew approximately
17% in the third quarter of 2026 over the prior year period, at the mid-point of the range, based on preliminary estimates of the impact of the restatement* - Third quarter Core Revenue1 of
$94.7 million increased13% over the prior-year period - Total written premiums placed for the third quarter increased
11% over the prior-year period to$1.31 billion - Policies in force grew
14% from the prior-year period to approximately 2.1 million - Corporate agent headcount of 568 increased
9% compared to the prior-year period - Total franchise producers of 2,272 increased
7% from the prior-year period
For the third quarter of 2026, total revenues are estimated to be between
*See “Preliminary Nature of Results”
1Core Revenue is a non-GAAP measure. Reconciliation of Core Revenue to total revenues, the most directly comparable financial measure presented in accordance with GAAP, is set forth in the reconciliation table accompanying this release.
Preliminary revenue for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025 (in thousands):
| Three Months Ended September 30, | Nine Months Ended September 30, | ||||||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2025 | ||||||||||
| Revenues: | |||||||||||||
| Core Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Renewal Commissions(1) | $ | 19,887 | $ | 19,671 | $ | 59,083 | $ | 59,742 | |||||
| Renewal Royalty Fees(2) | 53,420 | 45,687 | 149,522 | 128,312 | |||||||||
| New Business Commissions(1) | 9,127 | 7,526 | 26,192 | 20,840 | |||||||||
| New Business Royalty Fees(2) | 9,371 | 8,275 | 26,653 | 23,024 | |||||||||
| Agency Fees(1) | 2,864 | 2,715 | 8,332 | 7,861 | |||||||||
| Total Core Revenue | 94,669 | 83,874 | 269,782 | 239,779 | |||||||||
| Cost Recovery Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Initial Franchise Fees(2) | 1,220 | 1,380 | 4,189 | 3,969 | |||||||||
| Franchise Operating Fees(2)(3) | 2,500-4,500 | 2,500-4,500 | 8,000-13,000 | 8,000-13,000 | |||||||||
| Interest Income | 80 | 162 | 292 | 530 | |||||||||
| Total Cost Recovery Revenue | 3,800-5,800 | 4,042-6,042 | 12,481-17,481 | 12,499-17,499 | |||||||||
| Ancillary Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Contingent Commissions(1) | 9,993 | 4,542 | 36,404 | 13,510 | |||||||||
| Other Franchise Revenues(2) | 356 | 477 | 2,117 | 2,258 | |||||||||
| Total Ancillary Revenue | 10,349 | 5,019 | 38,521 | 15,768 | |||||||||
| Total Revenues | 108,818 - 110,818 | 92,935 - 94,935 | 320,784 - 325,784 | 268,046 - 273,046 | |||||||||
(1) Renewal Commissions, New Business Commissions, Agency Fees, and Contingent Commissions are included in "Commissions and agency fees"
(2) Renewal Royalty Fees, New Business Royalty Fees, Initial Franchise Fees, Franchise Operating Fees, and Other Franchise Revenues are included in "Franchise revenues"
(3) Franchise Operating Fees includes ongoing technology-related fees and E&O insurance program fees paid by franchisees
Full Year 2026 Outlook
We are reaffirming guidance for the full year 2026 as follows:
- Total revenues are expected to grow organically between
12% and19% considering the expected range of impact of the restatement as noted below - Total written premiums are expected to grow between
12% and20% .
Restatement of Financial Results
In response to a comment letter received from the SEC as part of its standard review of our annual filings, management determined that its historical accounting for certain costs to obtain customer contracts did not conform to GAAP. As reported in Item 4.02 of Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 9, 2026, the Company concluded that the following previously issued financial statements should no longer be relied upon and should be restated (the “Restatement”): (i) the audited consolidated financial statements for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023 (the “Annual Periods”), included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on February 19, 2026; and (ii) the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements as of and for the quarterly and year-to-date periods ended September 30, June 30 and March 31 of each of 2025, 2024 and 2023, and June 30 and March 31, 2026, included in the Company’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for those periods (the “Interim Periods” and, together with the Annual Periods, the “Non-Reliance Periods”). Concurrently with this evaluation, management initiated a comprehensive review of our broader accounting policies. Through this process, management identified an additional departure from GAAP in the presentation of certain fees charged to franchisees, consisting of technology-related fees and fees for participation in the Company's errors and omissions (“E&O”) insurance program.
During the Non-Reliance Periods, certain qualifying commissions paid to obtain customer contracts were expensed within employee compensation and benefits rather than capitalized and amortized over the period of expected benefit. While our historical accounting reflects the underlying economic realities of the business by expensing these costs as incurred, we have determined it does not conform to the FASB’s standards and must be restated. The Company preliminarily expects employee compensation and benefits to decrease and income from operations to increase by approximately
During the Non-Reliance Periods, certain fees charged to franchisees, consisting of technology-related fees and fees for participation in the Company's E&O insurance program, were recorded as a reduction of general and administrative expenses rather than recognized as franchise revenues in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”). Correcting this departure from GAAP results in a reclassification that increases both franchise revenues and general and administrative expenses by equal amounts in the same periods. This correction affects only the presentation of these amounts, not the timing of their recognition, and had no effect on operating income, net income or cash flows for the Non-Reliance Periods. We preliminarily expect both total revenue and general and administrative expenses to increase by equivalent amounts in the ranges of approximately
The Company intends to file an amendment to its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 (the “Form 10-K/A”) to restate the financial statements for the Annual Periods, including the comparative financial information for 2024 and 2023, and for the quarterly and year-to-date periods ended September 30, June 30 and March 31 of 2025 and 2024. It also intends to file amendments to its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended June 30, 2026 and March 31, 2026 to restate the affected interim financial statements. The Company intends to file these amendments as soon as practicable.
Conference Call Information
Goosehead will host a conference call and webcast today at 4:30 PM ET to discuss these select preliminary results for the quarter. To access the call by phone, participants should go to this link (registration link), and you will be provided with the dial in details. In addition, a live webcast of the conference call will also be available on Goosehead’s investor relations website at http://ir.gooseheadinsurance.com. A webcast replay of the call will be available at http://ir.gooseheadinsurance.com for one year following the call.
About Goosehead
Goosehead (NASDAQ: GSHD) is a rapidly growing and innovative independent personal lines insurance agency that distributes its products and services through corporate and franchise locations throughout the United States. Goosehead was founded on the premise that the consumer should be at the center of our universe and that everything we do should be directed at providing extraordinary value by offering broad product choice and a world-class service experience. Goosehead represents over 200 insurance companies that underwrite personal and commercial lines. For more information, please visit goosehead.com or goosehead.com/become-a-franchisee.
Preliminary Nature of Results
The financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025 included in this release are preliminary, have not been reviewed or audited by the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, are based on the Company’s estimates, and were prepared prior to the completion of the Company’s financial statement close process or the Restatement. Accordingly, our actual results and the impact of the Restatement may differ from the preliminary financial information presented herein, and any such differences could be material. The preliminary financial information is subject to, among other things, the completion of the Restatement and the Company’s financial statement close and review procedures for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025, and should not be viewed as a substitute for full interim financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain various “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which represent Goosehead’s expectations or beliefs concerning future events. Forward-looking statements are statements other than historical facts and may include statements that address future operating, financial or business performance, including the scope, timing and expected impact of the Restatement on historical results or on our outlook, the filings of any periodic reports or amendments thereto, Goosehead’s strategies or expectations, future earnings reports or updates, and the timing of any of the foregoing. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may”, “might”, “will”, “should”, “expects”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimates”, “predicts”, “projects”, “potential”, “outlook” or “continue”, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and involve significant risks, uncertainties, and other important factors that could cause actual results, developments and business decisions to differ materially from those contemplated by these statements.
Factors that could cause actual results or performance to differ from the expectations expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the completion of the Company’s financial statement close process and the review of its results; the discovery of additional information relevant to the Restatement; the time required to complete the Restatement and related filings; the Company’s expectations regarding materiality or significance and the Restatement’s quantitative effects; any delay in the filing of required periodic reports and the consequences thereof; potential litigation, regulatory inquiries or proceedings; conditions impacting insurance carriers or other parties with which Goosehead does business, the loss of one or more key executives or an inability to attract and retain qualified personnel and the failure to attract and retain highly qualified franchisees. These risks and uncertainties also include, but are not limited to, those described under the captions “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in Goosehead’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and in Goosehead’s other filings with the SEC, which are available free of charge on the SEC's website at: www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated. All forward-looking statements and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to Goosehead or to persons acting on behalf of Goosehead are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to these risks and uncertainties. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Goosehead does not undertake any obligation to update them in light of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable law.
Contacts
Maddie Middleton
Goosehead Insurance - Senior Director of Investor Relations
Email: madeline.middleton@goosehead.com; IR@goosehead.com
Goosehead Insurance, Inc.
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures to GAAP
This release includes certain financial performance measures that are not required by, nor presented in accordance with, generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). The Company refers to these measures as “non-GAAP financial measures.” The Company uses these non-GAAP financial measures when planning, monitoring and evaluating its performance and considers these non-GAAP financial measures to be useful metrics for management and investors to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period by excluding potential differences caused by variations in capital structures, tax position, depreciation, amortization and certain other items that the Company believes are not representative of its core business. The Company uses these non-GAAP financial measures for business planning purposes and in measuring its performance relative to that of its competitors.
These non-GAAP financial measures are defined by the Company as follows:
- “Core Revenue” is a supplemental measure of our performance and includes Renewal Commissions, Renewal Royalty Fees, New Business Commissions, New Business Royalty Fees, and Agency Fees. We believe that Core Revenue is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it summarizes all of our revenues from sales of individual insurance policies.
- “Cost Recovery Revenue” is a supplemental measure of our performance and includes Initial Franchise Fees, Franchise Operating Fees and Interest Income. We believe that Cost Recovery Revenue is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it summarizes revenues that are viewed by management as cost recovery mechanisms.
- “Ancillary Revenue” is a supplemental measure of our performance and includes Contingent Commissions and Other Franchise Revenues. We believe that Ancillary Revenue is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it summarizes revenues that are ancillary to our core business.
While the Company believes that these non-GAAP financial measures are useful in evaluating its business, this information should be considered as supplemental in nature and is not meant as a substitute for revenues, net income, or earnings per share, in each case as recognized in accordance with GAAP. In addition, other companies, including companies in the Company’s industry, may calculate such measures differently, which reduces their usefulness as comparative measures.
The following tables show a reconciliation from total revenues to Core Revenue, Cost Recovery Revenue, and Ancillary Revenue (non-GAAP basis) for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025 (in thousands), based on preliminary estimates of the impact of the restatement*:
| Three Months Ended September 30, | Nine Months Ended September 30, | ||||||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2025 | ||||||||||
| Total Revenues | 108,818 - 110,818 | 92,935 - 94,935 | 320,784 - 325,784 | 268,046 - 273,046 | |||||||||
| Core Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Renewal Commissions(1) | $ | 19,887 | $ | 19,671 | $ | 59,083 | $ | 59,742 | |||||
| Renewal Royalty Fees(2) | 53,420 | 45,687 | 149,522 | 128,312 | |||||||||
| New Business Commissions(1) | 9,127 | 7,526 | 26,192 | 20,840 | |||||||||
| New Business Royalty Fees(2) | 9,371 | 8,275 | 26,653 | 23,024 | |||||||||
| Agency Fees(1) | 2,864 | 2,715 | 8,332 | 7,861 | |||||||||
| Total Core Revenue | 94,669 | 83,874 | 269,782 | 239,779 | |||||||||
| Cost Recovery Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Initial Franchise Fees(2) | 1,220 | 1,380 | 4,189 | 3,969 | |||||||||
| Franchise Operating Fees(2)(3) | 2,500-4,500 | 2,500-4,500 | 8,000-13,000 | 8,000-13,000 | |||||||||
| Interest Income | 80 | 162 | 292 | 530 | |||||||||
| Total Cost Recovery Revenue | 3,800-5,800 | 4,042-6,042 | 12,481-17,481 | 12,499-17,499 | |||||||||
| Ancillary Revenue: | |||||||||||||
| Contingent Commissions(1) | 9,993 | 4,542 | 36,404 | 13,510 | |||||||||
| Other Franchise Revenues(2) | 356 | 477 | 2,117 | 2,258 | |||||||||
| Total Ancillary Revenue | 10,349 | 5,019 | 38,521 | 15,768 | |||||||||
| Total Revenues | 108,818 - 110,818 | 92,935 - 94,935 | 320,784 - 325,784 | 268,046 - 273,046 | |||||||||
(1) Renewal Commissions, New Business Commissions, Agency Fees, and Contingent Commissions are included in "Commissions and agency fees"
(2) Renewal Royalty Fees, New Business Royalty Fees, Initial Franchise Fees, Franchise Operating Fees and Other Franchise Revenues are included in "Franchise revenues"
(3) Franchise Operating Fees includes ongoing technology-related fees and E&O insurance program fees paid by franchisees
*See “Preliminary Nature of Results”
Goosehead Insurance, Inc.
Key Performance Indicators
| September 30, 2026 | December 31, 2025 | September 30, 2025 | ||||||||||
| Corporate sales agents < 1 year tenured | 320 | 261 | 286 | |||||||||
| Corporate sales agents > 1 year tenured | 248 | 228 | 237 | |||||||||
| Operating franchises < 1 year tenured | 60 | 87 | 101 | |||||||||
| Operating franchises > 1 year tenured | 810 | 922 | 967 | |||||||||
| Franchise Producers < 1 Year | 740 | 545 | 574 | |||||||||
| Franchise Producers > 1 Year | 1,532 | 1,568 | 1,550 | |||||||||
| Total Franchise Producers | 2,272 | 2,113 | 2,124 | |||||||||
| QTD Corporate Agent Productivity < 1 Year(1) | $ | 12,686 | $ | 13,728 | $ | 13,565 | ||||||
| QTD Corporate Agent Productivity > 1 Year(1) | $ | 27,116 | $ | 22,735 | $ | 26,201 | ||||||
| QTD Franchise Productivity < 1 Year(2) | $ | 29,874 | $ | 16,101 | $ | 18,312 | ||||||
| QTD Franchise Productivity > 1 Year(2) | $ | 48,942 | $ | 34,413 | $ | 36,755 | ||||||
| Policies in Force (in thousands) | 2,122 | 1,900 | 1,853 | |||||||||
| Client Retention | 86 | % | 85 | % | 85 | % | ||||||
| Premium Retention | 87 | % | 90 | % | 93 | % | ||||||
| QTD Corporate Written Premium (in thousands) | $ | 212,534 | $ | 193,848 | $ | 206,135 | ||||||
| QTD Franchise Written Premium (in thousands) | $ | 1,094,774 | $ | 896,282 | $ | 975,690 | ||||||
| QTD Total Written Premium (in thousands) | $ | 1,307,308 | $ | 1,090,130 | $ | 1,181,825 | ||||||
| Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)(3) | 4.1 | — | — | |||||||||
(1) - Corporate Productivity is New Business Production per Agent (Corporate): The New Business Revenue collected related to corporate sales, divided by the average number of full-time corporate sales agents for the same period. This calculation excludes interns, part-time sales agents and partial full-time equivalent sales managers.
(2) - Franchise Productivity is New Business Production per Agency: The gross commissions paid by Carriers and Agency Fees received related to policies in their first term sold by franchise sales agents, prior to paying Royalty Fees to the Company, divided by the average number of franchises for the same period.
(3) CSAT: Customer Satisfaction Score; the average of all client responses to a single survey question asking clients to rate their most recent interaction with us on a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 is most satisfied and 1 is least satisfied. The current period reflects all responses from October 1, 2025 through the end of the current period. It is presented on a trailing twelve-month basis beginning with the period ended September 30, 2026.
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