Piper Sandler reported third-quarter 2026 results alongside a quarterly dividend and a new share-repurchase authorization. Revenue was lower than a year earlier on a U.S. GAAP basis, while adjusted revenue was unchanged; the company pointed to growth in advisory services and strong activity in fixed income.
For the first nine months of the year, both GAAP and adjusted revenue reached records, supported by growth in corporate investment banking.
Quarterly results
- Revenue: Piper Sandler recorded $443 million in GAAP net revenue, down 8% from a year earlier and 11% from the second quarter. Adjusted net revenue was $456 million, flat year over year and down 7% sequentially.
- Profitability: GAAP pre-tax margin was 15.0%, down 7.4 percentage points year over year. Adjusted pre-tax margin was 19.8%, down 1.4 points.
- Earnings: Net income attributable to Piper Sandler was $55 million, or $0.78 per diluted share, on a GAAP basis. Adjusted net income was $62 million, or $0.87 per share. Both measures were lower than a year earlier.
- Adjusted figures are non-GAAP measures and are presented alongside the company’s GAAP results.
Business performance and strategy
- Corporate investment banking generated a record $307 million in third-quarter revenue, led by its financial services, healthcare, and energy, power and infrastructure groups.
- Advisory services revenue grew 18% year over year. Fixed income services generated $60 million, the group’s strongest quarterly result since 2021.
- For the first nine months of 2026, GAAP net revenue reached a record $1.4 billion, up 15% from the same period last year. Adjusted revenue also set a record at $1.4 billion, up 14%. Corporate investment banking revenue rose 21% over the period.
- Piper Sandler launched equities trading in Europe in September through Piper Sandler Europe, extending its U.S. equities business to European clients.
- The company added four professionals, including a managing director, to a London-based debt advisory team focused on infrastructure companies. It also added a managing director to its private capital advisory group, focused on secondary capital advisory.
Capital returns
- Piper Sandler declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share.
- It also announced a new share-repurchase authorization.
The quarter combined record corporate investment banking revenue and strong fixed-income activity with lower overall quarterly earnings and margins. The company also reported record revenue for the first nine months and announced two ways to return capital to shareholders.