A Look Back at Personal Loan Stocks’ Q4 Earnings: Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL) Vs The Rest Of The Pack

Barchart·03/25/2026 02:48:14

The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how personal loan stocks fared in Q4, starting with Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL).

Personal loan providers offer unsecured credit for various consumer needs. The sector benefits from digital application processes, increasing consumer comfort with online financial services, and opportunities in underserved credit segments. Headwinds include credit risk management in unsecured lending, regulatory oversight of lending practices, and intense competition affecting margins from both traditional and fintech lenders.

The 8 personal loan stocks we track reported a strong Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 3.1% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 1% below.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 8.1% since the latest earnings results.

Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL)

Founded in 2016 as an alternative to traditional credit cards for younger shoppers, Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL) provides a payment platform that allows consumers to split purchases into four interest-free installments over six weeks at participating retailers.

Sezzle reported revenues of $129.9 million, up 32.2% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2.7%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 20.6% since reporting and currently trades at $75.51.

We think Sezzle is a good business, but is it a buy today? Read our full report here, it’s free.

Best Q4: Atlanticus Holdings (NASDAQ:ATLC)

Using data analytics to serve the millions of Americans with less-than-perfect credit scores, Atlanticus Holdings (NASDAQ:ATLC) provides technology and services that help lenders offer credit products to consumers often overlooked by traditional financing providers.

Atlanticus Holdings reported revenues of $609.2 million, up 97.4% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.1%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Atlanticus Holdings achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 6.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $56.31.

Is now the time to buy Atlanticus Holdings? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM)

Founded by PayPal co-founder Max Levchin with a mission to create honest financial products, Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) provides a payment network that allows consumers to make purchases and pay for them over time with transparent, flexible installment loans.

Affirm reported revenues of $1.12 billion, up 29.6% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 6.3%. Still, it was a mixed quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 23.3% since the results and currently trades at $45.59.

Read our full analysis of Affirm’s results here.

OneMain (NYSE:OMF)

Dating back to 1912 and formerly known as Springleaf, OneMain Holdings (NYSE:OMF) provides personal loans, auto financing, and credit cards to nonprime consumers who have limited access to traditional banking services.

OneMain reported revenues of $1.28 billion, up 8.8% year on year. This number was in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a satisfactory quarter as it also recorded a narrow beat of analysts’ net interest income estimates.

OneMain had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 15.4% since reporting and currently trades at $53.46.

Read our full, actionable report on OneMain here, it’s free.

Enova (NYSE:ENVA)

Pioneering online lending since 2004 with a massive database of over 65 terabytes of customer behavior data, Enova International (NYSE:ENVA) provides online financial services including installment loans and lines of credit to non-prime consumers and small businesses in the United States and Brazil.

Enova reported revenues of $839.4 million, up 15.1% year on year. This print met analysts’ expectations. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also logged a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a narrow beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Enova had the weakest performance against analyst estimates among its peers. The stock is down 12.8% since reporting and currently trades at $137.45.

Read our full, actionable report on Enova here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our 9 Best Market-Beating Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

This article contains syndicated content. We have not reviewed, approved, or endorsed the content, and may receive compensation for placement of the content on this site. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.