Behind the raises, a quarter of write-downs, restatements and withdrawn targets

The largest charge

Fiserv's quarter is dominated by one number. The company says it recorded a GAAP loss per share of $(11.17) in the third quarter of 2026, after a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $6.45 billion. The company says GAAP revenue was $5.20 billion and adjusted earnings per share were $1.75. The gap between the two earnings figures is the point: the impairment drives the headline loss, while the adjusted figure excludes it. m:…3693

The company says it raised its Project Elevate savings target to $1 billion and affirmed its 2026 organic revenue outlook of (1%) to 0% and its adjusted earnings per share outlook of $7.20 to $7.40. The company says it expects to repurchase $500 million of its common stock in the fourth quarter of 2026. Cost savings and buybacks are doing the work of steadying the story while the impairment rewrites the past. m:…3693

A restatement, not a revision

Driven Brands goes further than a guidance cut. The company says its Audit Committee concluded that previously issued financial statements for fiscal years 2023, 2024 and 2025, and quarterly periods in 2025 and 2026, require restatement. The company says the accounting errors relate primarily to fixed asset write-offs, misclassification and incorrect useful lives. The company says it is delaying its third-quarter earnings call and will not file its Form 10-Q by the deadline. m:…0264

The company says it updated its 2026 adjusted EBITDA outlook to $410-$430 million, down from $430-$460 million, and expects restatement-related costs of at least $50 million in 2026. The company says it must temporarily cease share repurchases until it becomes current with its reporting obligations, and delays in issuing Franchise Disclosure Documents have constrained new unit openings in the third and fourth quarters of 2026. m:…0264

What the company can report is preliminary: the company says preliminary third-quarter same store sales grew 2.0%, with Take 5 same store sales up 4.9%. The company says it held about $230 million in cash at September 26, 2026, and ended the quarter with total net debt of about $1.4 billion. m:…0264

Targets withdrawn, guidance lowered

Vital Farms shows what a reset looks like without a scandal attached. The company says it reported third-quarter net revenue of $182.2 million, a net loss of $6.5 million, adjusted EBITDA of $1.5 million and a gross margin of 23.1%. Those are thin margins on a growing revenue line, and the outlook follows the same pattern. m:…2748

The company says it updated its fiscal 2026 net revenue outlook to around $730 million and its adjusted EBITDA outlook to a loss of around $(15) million, and withdrew its previously issued fiscal 2030 financial targets. The company says it reaffirmed its fiscal 2026 capital expenditure outlook of $70 million to $75 million. Withdrawing long-term targets rather than lowering them again is a choice, and it removes a benchmark the company would otherwise have to keep explaining. m:…2748

The company says it held $84.0 million in cash at September 27, 2026, against $117.6 million of debt. That balance sheet does not suggest distress, which suggests the withdrawn targets are a credibility decision rather than a funding one. m:…2748

Selling a business, spending less

AdaptHealth pairs growth with a loss. The company says it reported third-quarter net revenue of $745.6 million, up 10.9% from the third quarter of 2025, and organic revenue growth of 12.8%, but a net loss of $168.2 million against net income of $10.2 million a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA was $141.9 million, down 2.9% from a year earlier, the company says. m:…3872

The company says it revised its full-year 2026 guidance to net revenue of $2.88 billion to $2.90 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $510 million to $525 million and free cash flow of $50 million to $75 million. The company says it agreed to sell its Diabetes Health business for $235.0 million in cash, with the sale expected to close in early 2027. m:…3872

Solid Power's clean-up is quieter. The company says it reported revenue and grant income of $1.2 million for the third quarter, a net loss of $24.4 million or $0.11 per share, and operating expenses of $31.1 million. The company says it reduced its 2026 cash investment guidance to $75 million to $85 million, while total liquidity at September 30, 2026 was $397.6 million and it had no debt. m:…0955

The company says its MOBIUS continuous electrolyte production line is expected to be fully commissioned by year-end 2026, that it is in discussions about a potential joint venture for electrolyte production in the Republic of Korea, and that it supplied electrolyte material to Samsung SDI and SK On during the quarter. The company says it is also expanding into drone, defense and humanoid robotics markets. m:…0955

What the clean-up suggests

This suggests third-quarter reporting is doing two jobs at once: presenting the quarter and clearing the decks. An impairment, a restatement and a withdrawn set of targets are different in kind, but they share an effect. Each one makes past numbers less reliable as a guide to the next quarter, and each forces readers to judge the company on what it does next rather than what it previously promised. m:…3693 m:…0264 m:…2748

The open items are concrete. Driven Brands has yet to file restated accounts or quantify costs beyond at least $50 million, AdaptHealth's disposal does not close until early 2027, and Solid Power's production line commissioning is still expected rather than done. m:…0264 m:…3872 m:…0955