Affirm released the results of its fiscal fourth quarter, which closed on 30 June, on 27 August 2026. The American buy now, pay later lender reported the most profitable quarter since it was founded, and volume growth above 30% for the eleventh quarter in a row.
Revenue reached $1.17 billion, up 33%, above the consensus of $1.11 billion. Gross merchandise volume, the benchmark measure in the sector, came in at $14.1 billion, up 36%, against the $13.39 billion analysts expected.
Two margins, two readings
Adjusted operating income came to $353 million, or 30% of revenue. Operating income under American accounting standards stood at $147 million, a margin of 12.6% and six points better than a year earlier. The gap between the two measures comes mainly from share-based compensation, which the adjusted figure strips out.
Reported earnings per share, at $4.62 against the $0.85 expected, does not measure operating performance. It includes the release of a valuation allowance on deferred tax assets, a one-off item. Management says the quarter remains the most profitable in the company's history even without that effect.
| Metric | Q4 fiscal 2026 | Fiscal 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Gross merchandise volume | $14.1B | $50.2B |
| Revenue | $1.17B | $4.26B |
| Adjusted operating margin | 30% | not disclosed for the full year |
| Gross merchandise volume, prior year | - | $36.7B |
The card drives frequency
The rise in volume owes more to the intensity of use than to recruitment. Active consumers grew by 21%, to 27.8 million, while transactions per active consumer rose by 20%, to 7.0. The two effects multiply, which produces volume growth larger than either one taken on its own.
The Affirm Card, a Visa debit card that lets a shopper convert a purchase into instalments after the fact, is the main driver. It counts 5.2 million active consumers, up 125%. Management puts the attach rate at 19% of active accounts, and says that cardholders spend roughly twice as much as the typical Affirm customer.
Credit risk, the number to watch
The 30-day delinquency rate on monthly amortising loans, excluding Peloton and excluding Pay in X products, stands at 2.5%, against a range of 2.7% to 2.8% over the three previous quarters. Management says it sees no sign of strain in the delinquency data.
The metric carries its methodological caveats in its own name. It leaves out part of the portfolio, and the rapid growth of the loan book mechanically improves the ratio. A book that grows fast holds a large share of loans that are too young to be late.
- The scope excludes Pay in X products, the short interest-free instalment offer, whose risk profile differs from that of an amortising loan.
- The dilution effect from growth holds as long as volume rises by more than 30% a quarter.
- Funding costs, and not the delinquency rate alone, determine the net margin on a short-term credit book.
What the company promises for fiscal 2027
For the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Affirm expects revenue of $1.19 billion to $1.22 billion and gross merchandise volume of $13.7 billion to $14.0 billion. For the full year, the company targets volume above $64 billion and an adjusted operating margin above 30.5%. It assumes revenue less transaction costs of 4.16% of volume, above the range of 3.25% to 4% that it presents as its medium-term target.
One question remains, and the quarterly results do not settle it. Targeting more than $64 billion in volume assumes another twelve months of high double-digit growth, in a sector where the rules that apply to short-term credit are tightening on both sides of the Atlantic.