Sabre Corp (SABR) · Nov 5, 2026 · Earnings
Beat — Adjusted EPS $0.11 vs ~$0.03 consensus; revenue $738.4M vs ~$731.8M consensus
Sabre’s Q3 earnings beat revenue and adjusted EPS expectations, while the company raised 2026 EBITDA and free-cash-flow guidance again.
Sabre is rebuilding around its core travel marketplace and airline-technology businesses after selling Hospitality Solutions, while investing in cloud, NDC and AI-enabled travel distribution and trying to generate cash to reduce its heavy debt load. Its prior outlook already called for low-to-mid-single-digit revenue growth and a recovery in profitability, so this quarter matters mainly for execution and the size of the upgrade.
The quarter cleared the published bar. Revenue was $738.4 million, about 0.9% above the published consensus of roughly $731.8 million, while adjusted EPS of $0.11 was well above the roughly $0.03 consensus. The filing also says third-quarter revenue growth was in line with guidance but Pro Forma Adjusted EBITDA exceeded guidance. 〔0〕
| Figure | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Consensus / prior guidance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (Financial Highlights) | $738.4M (+3%) | $715.2M | ~$731.8M |
| Adjusted EPS (Financial Highlights) | $0.11 | $(0.01) | ~$0.03 |
| Normalized Adjusted EBITDA (Financial Highlights) | $169.7M (+13%) | $150.0M | — |
| Pro Forma Adjusted EBITDA guidance (Business and Pro Forma Financial Outlook) | ~$610M (+14%) | ~$600M guidance | ~$600M prior guidance |
| Free Cash Flow guidance (Business and Pro Forma Financial Outlook) | ~$(50)M | ~$(65)M prior guidance | — |
| Net debt (Financial Highlights) | $4.03B | $3.66B | — |
Profitability is the strongest part of the update. Normalized Adjusted EBITDA rose 13% year over year to roughly $170 million, with operating margin expanding to 14.8% from 13.1%. Marketplace revenue grew 3%, helped by transaction-based revenue and favorable rate impacts, while lodging and other bookings grew 8% even as air bookings slipped 1%.
The second consecutive guidance increase strengthens the execution story. Sabre lifted full-year Pro Forma Adjusted EBITDA guidance from approximately $600 million to $610 million or more and improved its free-cash-flow outlook from roughly negative $65 million to negative $50 million. Revenue and air-booking growth guidance remained broadly unchanged, so the upgrade is primarily a margin and cash-management signal rather than evidence of a sharper top-line acceleration. The prior quarter had already raised these profit and cash targets, making this a continuation of an improving trend rather than a wholly new strategic turn.
Cash conversion and leverage remain the constraint. Reported third-quarter free cash flow was negative $47.5 million, and net debt increased to approximately $4.03 billion from $3.66 billion at the comparable prior-year balance-sheet date. Sabre attributes much of the quarter’s cash burn to refinancing fees and accrued interest, saying free cash flow would have been positive excluding those payments. That explanation reduces the quarter’s operational concern, but it does not remove the underlying burden of high interest expense: $123.4 million in the quarter versus $111.3 million a year earlier.
Bottom line: Sabre delivered a genuine earnings beat and raised its key 2026 profit and cash targets again, which advances the turnaround story. The improvement is meaningful but still bounded by modest revenue growth, negative reported cash flow and a very large debt load.
Investor Day and multi-year outlook, November 17
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