Credit Acceptance

CACC · Nasdaq · Financials · Financials, fiscal 2016 to 2025

CACC · Last close · November 6, 2026

$529.56

Credit Acceptance's revenue rose 7.2% to $2.3 billion in fiscal 2025. Its net margin was 18.3%, up from 11.5% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $1.1 billion, down 7.3%. It paid out $725 million in dividends and buybacks, 69% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 6.6%.

CREDIT ACCEPTANCE CORP Latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 10-K filed February 13, 2026 · 0000885550-26-000047 Updated November 5, 2026

Revenue

$2.3B

7.2%

Net margin

18.3%

6.8 pts

Net income

$424M

71.0%

Free cash flow

$1.1B

7.3%

Return on capital

30.9%

8.9 pts

Market cap

$5.5B

Nov 6 close

P/E

17.4x

On $30.51 EPS, 4 qtrs

Net margin is net income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.

Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.

What Credit Acceptance does

Credit Acceptance finances car purchases for people with weak or limited credit histories. It works through a nationwide network of automobile dealers. The dealer sells a car to a consumer and the loan, which the company calls a Consumer Loan, is assigned to Credit Acceptance. Legally it is an indirect lender, because the dealer makes the loan first. The company says most of the loans it takes on are to consumers with impaired or limited credit.

It makes money from collecting on those loans. When a dealer joins, it signs a servicing agreement under which Credit Acceptance administers, services and collects the loans. It also offers dealers a non-recourse cash payment, called an advance, against the future collections on the loans it services for them. It reports to the three national credit reporting agencies, so on-time payments can help a customer's credit score.

The company was founded in 1972 to collect loans for dealerships owned by its founder, Donald Foss, and in the 1980s it began offering the service to other dealers. It competes with traditional lenders and with non-traditional lenders.

Its biggest risks, as it describes them

Misjudging how much it will collect on its loans and when.
Competition from traditional banks and non-traditional lenders.
Weak conditions in the car market or among customers with poor credit.
Too many of its dealers located in a few states.
Reliance on outside companies to run its add-on products and some business functions.

From Credit Acceptance's annual report on Form 10-K, filed February 13, 2026, in our words; the 10-K has the full description and every risk factor. Updated with each new annual report.

Income statement

Revenue and net income

US$ billions, fiscal years; net losses in red. Revenue on the left axis, net income on the right; zero is the same line on both.

Revenue (left axis)Net income (right axis)

Gross profit, R&D and operating income

US$ billions, fiscal years. Gross profit is revenue minus the cost of what was sold; research and development is one of the costs paid from it; what remains after all operating costs is operating income. Losses in red.

Gross profitResearch and developmentOperating income

Margins

Percent of revenue

GrossOperatingNetFree cash flow

From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 9.3% a year and net income 2.7% a year, as buybacks cut the share count by 43%.

Diluted earnings per share

US$ per share, fiscal years, restated for any stock splits; loss years in red.

Returns on capital

Return on capital and on equity

Percent. Return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business (debt plus equity, minus cash); return on equity is net income over shareholders' equity. Both use the average of opening and closing balances.

Return on capitalReturn on equity

Balance sheet

Cash and debt

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Debt includes finance leases.

Cash and short-term investmentsDebt

Assets, liabilities and equity

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Assets equal liabilities plus equity; negative equity in red.

Total assetsTotal liabilitiesShareholders' equity

Debt and liquidity ratios

Times. Debt to equity, current assets over current liabilities, and net debt over EBITDA (a full year's).

Debt to equityCurrent ratioNet debt to EBITDA

Five years at a glance

Fiscal year end	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Cash and short-term investments	23	8	13	344	23
Debt incl. finance leases	792	794	989	991	1,088
Net debt (negative means net cash)	769	787	976	648	1,065
Net debt to EBITDA	0.5x	0.9x	1.5x	0.9x	1.0x
Debt to equity	0.4x	0.5x	0.6x	0.6x	0.7x
Interest coverage	8.7x	5.3x	2.4x	1.8x	2.2x
Current ratio	—	—	—	—	—
Quick ratio	—	—	—	—	—

US$ millions unless stated, at each fiscal year end. Net debt to EBITDA is debt minus cash, divided by operating income before depreciation and amortization: roughly how many years of those earnings the net debt equals. Debt to equity is debt as a multiple of shareholders' equity. Interest coverage is operating income divided by interest expense. The current ratio is current assets over current liabilities; the quick ratio leaves out inventory.

Cash flow

Cash from operations, capital spending and free cash flow

US$ billions, fiscal years. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; negative years in red.

Cash from operationsCapital spendingFree cash flow

Stock-based compensation and buybacks

US$ billions, fiscal years. Shares paid to employees (stock-based compensation, a cost that uses no cash) against cash spent buying shares back. Buybacks that only match it leave the share count roughly where it was.

Stock-based compensationShare buybacks

Dividends and buybacks

US$ billions, cash paid in each fiscal year

DividendsShare buybacks

Diluted share count

Weighted-average diluted shares, millions

Projections

Project Credit Acceptance's revenue, net income and earnings per share five years ahead in a bull, a base and a bear case with your own figures, and see the share prices your P/E estimates give them, or value it with a discounted cash flow model. Every projected figure is yours: it is not a forecast of ours.

Open Credit Acceptance's projections

Insider trades

Over the 12 months between November 7, 2025 and November 6, 2026, 1 insider bought $1.5 million of Credit Acceptance shares on the open market, and 10 insiders sold $86.7 million, $60.6 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.

Buys and sells by month

US$ millions, open-market purchases (up) and sales (down) by officers, directors and 10% owners in each month.

BoughtSold

Date	Insider	Trade	Shares	Price	Value	Filing
Nov 2, 2026	Thomas N TryforosDirector	Bought	3,000	$485.20	$1.5 million	Form 4
Jul 16, 2026	Jill Foss Watson10% owner	Sold	1,436	$640.52	$919,789	Form 4
Jul 2, 2026	Jill Foss Watson10% owner	Sold	11,000	$653.24	$7.2 million	Form 4
Jun 26, 2026	Erin J KerberChief Legal Officer	Sold plan	5,720	$629.80	$3.6 million	Form 4
Jun 26, 2026	Nicholas J ElliottChief Transformation Officer	Sold plan	2,306	$629.99	$1.5 million	Form 4
Jun 25, 2026	Erin J KerberChief Legal Officer	Sold plan	2,937	$627.19	$1.8 million	Form 4
Jun 25, 2026	Nicholas J ElliottChief Transformation Officer	Sold plan	1,183	$627.01	$741,756	Form 4
Jun 24, 2026	Erin J KerberChief Legal Officer	Sold plan	8,656	$600.94	$5.2 million	Form 4
Jun 24, 2026	Jonathan LumChief Operating Officer	Sold plan	6,000	$600.00	$3.6 million	Form 4
Jun 24, 2026	Nicholas J ElliottChief Transformation Officer	Sold plan	3,487	$601.01	$2.1 million	Form 4
Jun 24, 2026	Jay D MartinChief Financial Officer	Sold plan	3,000	$601.04	$1.8 million	Form 4
Jun 17, 2026	Nicholas J ElliottChief Transformation Officer	Sold plan	3	$577.85	$1,734	Form 4

The latest 12 of 64 trades. Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from their Form 4 filings with the SEC: one row per person, day and filing, at the day's average price. Grants, option exercises and shares withheld for tax aren't counted. Insiders buy and sell for many reasons, such as taxes, spreading their savings or a plan set up months earlier, so a trade on its own says little about where a company is heading. For information only, not investment advice. Insider trades at all companies

Indicators

Four widely used measures, worked out from the company's filings. The cutoffs are the ones their authors or users go by, not a verdict of ours.

Indicator	FY23	FY24	FY25
Piotroski F-score	—	—	—
Rule of 40	66.9%	66.2%	52.6%
Altman Z''	—	—	—
Accruals ratio	−12.6%	−10.8%	−7.2%

Piotroski F-score: how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency the company passed in the year (Piotroski, 2000); 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Rule of 40: revenue growth plus free cash flow margin; software investors treat 40% or more as the bar. Altman Z'': working capital, retained earnings, operating income and equity weighed against assets and liabilities (Altman, 1995); Altman puts above 2.6 in the safe zone and below 1.1 in the distress zone. Accruals ratio: net income minus cash from operations, over average total assets; lower means profit is backed by cash.

The nine F-score tests

Test	FY23	FY24	FY25
Net income is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Cash from operations is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Return on assets rose	Fail	Fail	Pass
Cash from operations exceeds net income	Pass	Pass	Pass
Debt fell relative to assets	Fail	Pass	Fail
Current ratio rose	—	—	—
Share count didn't rise	Pass	Pass	Pass
Gross margin rose	—	—	—
Revenue rose relative to assets	Pass	Pass	Fail
F-score	—	—	—

Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.

Compare

Put Credit Acceptance side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.

Similar companies

Company	Year	Revenue growth	Operating margin	Free cash flow margin	Return on capital	Net debt to EBITDA	F-score	Compare
Credit Acceptance	FY25	7.2%	—	45.4%	30.9%	1.0x	—
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital	FY25	4.4%	—	—	—	—	—	Compare
Ellington Financial	FY25	10.1%	—	−275.1%	—	−0.5x	—	Compare
SEI Investments	FY25	8.1%	27.3%	25.5%	—	—	—	Compare
PROG	FY25	0.4%	8.6%	13.5%	13.2%	1.2x	—	Compare

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so the periods don't line up exactly. Free cash flow margin is free cash flow as a share of revenue. Net debt to EBITDA is explained under the balance sheet, and the F-score under Indicators.

10 years of figures

Fiscal year	FY16	FY17	FY18	FY19	FY20	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Income statement
Revenue	969	1,110	1,286	1,489	1,669	1,856	1,832	1,902	2,162	2,317
Revenue growth	17.4%	14.5%	15.8%	15.8%	12.1%	11.2%	−1.3%	3.8%	13.7%	7.2%
Gross profit	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Research and development	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating income	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Net income	333	470	574	656	421	958	536	286	248	424
Diluted EPS (US$)	16.31	24.04	29.39	34.57	23.47	59.52	39.32	21.99	19.88	36.38
Diluted shares (millions)	20	20	20	19	18	16	14	13	12	12
Cash flow
Cash from operations	507	566	704	812	985	1,069	1,239	1,204	1,138	1,055
Capital expenditure	6	8	25	27	8	8	3	4	2	2
Free cash flow	502	558	679	786	977	1,062	1,236	1,200	1,136	1,053
Dividends paid	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Share buybacks	122	124	129	300	481	1,472	784	203	313	725
Acquisitions	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stock-based compensation	7	15	10	8	6	25	36	39	45	51
Balance sheet at fiscal year end
Cash and short-term investments	15	8	26	187	16	23	8	13	344	23
Debt incl. finance leases	541	543	544	1,188	791	792	794	989	991	1,088
Total assets	4,218	4,986	6,237	7,423	7,489	7,051	6,905	7,610	8,855	8,632
Total liabilities	3,044	3,450	4,246	5,068	5,186	5,227	5,281	5,856	7,105	7,108
Shareholders' equity	1,174	1,536	1,991	2,355	2,302	1,824	1,624	1,754	1,750	1,524
Margins and ratios
Gross margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Net margin	34.3%	42.4%	44.6%	44.1%	25.2%	51.6%	29.2%	15.0%	11.5%	18.3%
Free cash flow margin	51.8%	50.2%	52.8%	52.8%	58.5%	57.2%	67.4%	63.1%	52.5%	45.4%
Rule of 40 (growth + FCF margin)	69.2%	64.8%	68.6%	68.6%	70.6%	68.4%	66.2%	66.9%	66.2%	52.6%
Return on capital	24.9%	30.1%	30.3%	27.5%	17.7%	38.2%	26.4%	19.2%	22.0%	30.9%
Return on equity	31.7%	34.7%	32.5%	30.2%	18.1%	46.4%	31.1%	16.9%	14.2%	25.9%
Return on assets	8.8%	10.2%	10.2%	9.6%	5.7%	13.2%	7.7%	3.9%	3.0%	4.8%
Net debt to EBITDA	0.8x	0.8x	0.6x	0.9x	1.0x	0.5x	0.9x	1.5x	0.9x	1.0x

US$ millions unless stated. Where a later 10-K restated a year, the latest filed figure is shown. Download all figures (CSV, US$ millions)

Source: Credit Acceptance's Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR. For information only, not investment advice. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with Credit Acceptance.