Teleconferência de Resultados do 2º Trimestre de 2026 da Security National Financial (SNFCA): Lucro Aumenta com Queda na Receita

A Security National Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: SNFCA) aumentou a lucratividade no segundo trimestre de 2026, apesar da receita consolidada menor. As operações de hipotecas voltaram a registrar lucro trimestral, enquanto os ganhos de investimentos impulsionaram os resultados divulgados do segmento de cemitérios e necrotérios.

Destaques

• O lucro após impostos do segundo trimestre aumentou 7,3% em relação ao mesmo período do ano anterior. O lucro líquido foi de aproximadamente US$ 9 milhões, uma alta de 28,3% ante os US$ 7 milhões registrados no 1T2026.
• A receita consolidada caiu 6,3% no trimestre e 5% no primeiro semestre, mas o lucro do primeiro semestre aumentou 8,1% na comparação anual.
• O segmento de Hipotecas registrou lucro líquido antes dos impostos de US$ 71.000, em comparação com um prejuízo de US$ 1,671 milhão no 2T2025. Esse foi o seu primeiro trimestre lucrativo desde o 3T2025.
• A receita de Cemitérios e Necrotérios subiu 20,7%, para US$ 9,8 milhões, enquanto o lucro antes dos impostos aumentou 69,5%, para US$ 3 milhões. A maior parte do crescimento dos lucros resultou do desempenho dos investimentos, e não das operações.
• A receita do segmento de Seguros de Vida caiu aproximadamente 5%, para US$ 98,4 milhões no primeiro semestre, enquanto o lucro antes dos impostos recuou 13%, para US$ 16,1 milhões, principalmente devido à menor participação nos lucros de construtoras de casas e à menor receita de empréstimos para construção.
• Os empréstimos hipotecários com atraso superior a 90 dias aumentaram para US$ 15,8 milhões, ante US$ 6,5 milhões no final do ano. A empresa afirmou que sua provisão continuava adequada e que estava monitorando a tendência de perto.

Principais Dados Financeiros

O aumento do lucro abrangente no primeiro semestre refletiu principalmente a remensuração por taxa de juros do LDTI para benefícios futuros de apólices. Isso passou de uma despesa de US$ 10,2 milhões no 1S2025 para um benefício de US$ 12,9 milhões no 1S2026. A administração enfatizou que essa medida pode oscilar de forma relevante com as taxas de desconto. Todos os números de 2025 citados foram revisados devido à adoção do LDTI.

Desempenho Operacional e dos Negócios

Hipotecas

A Security National Mortgage Company registrou lucro líquido antes dos impostos de US$ 71.000 no 2T, uma melhora de US$ 1,742 milhão ante o prejuízo de US$ 1,671 milhão registrado um ano antes. A lucratividade no acumulado do ano apresentou melhora superior a US$ 3 milhões.

As origens de empréstimos caíram 11% na comparação anual, de US$ 617 milhões para US$ 548 milhões, mas subiram 12% em relação ao trimestre anterior. A participação de mercado subiu para 10 pontos-base, ante 9 pontos-base no 1T, com base no volume do setor reportado pela Mortgage Bankers Association e citado pela administração.

O refinanciamento representou 17% do volume do 2T2026, ante 14% no 2T2025. A empresa atribuiu isso em parte a um maior foco em tomadores de empréstimo recorrentes. A atividade de linhas de crédito com garantia imobiliária (HELOC) atingiu uma média de uma transação por dia, em comparação com praticamente nenhuma no 4T2025.

Seguros de Vida

A receita do segmento de Seguros de Vida no 1S caiu de US$ 104 milhões para aproximadamente US$ 98,4 milhões, enquanto o lucro antes dos impostos recuou de US$ 18,6 milhões para US$ 16,1 milhões. A receita no 2T foi de aproximadamente US$ 49,5 milhões, contra US$ 53,4 milhões, e o lucro antes dos impostos ficou em US$ 8,5 milhões, ante US$ 10,6 milhões.

Prêmios de seguro e outras contraprestações caíram 4%, para US$ 57,6 milhões no 1S. A administração atribuiu grande parte dessa redução à queda nas vendas de produtos de prêmio único, descritos como os de menor rentabilidade do segmento. A produção de prêmios de pagamento periódico de primeiro ano superou a do mesmo período do ano anterior, mas a administração afirmou que o benefício entrará na receita divulgada gradualmente, conforme os segurados realizarem pagamentos recorrentes.

O resultado líquido de investimentos no 1S caiu 14%, para US$ 33,4 milhões. A receita líquida de participação nos lucros de construtoras reduziu cerca de US$ 2,8 milhões, enquanto a receita de juros e taxas de empréstimos para construção caiu cerca de US$ 1,1 milhão. As origens de empréstimos para construção ganharam força durante o 2T, embora a melhora ainda não tenha se refletido totalmente nos saldos em aberto ou na receita de juros.

O segmento aumentou os investimentos em terrenos e desenvolvimento de loteamentos residenciais para aproximadamente US$ 122 milhões, ante US$ 98 milhões no final do ano. A administração acredita que esses projetos podem sustentar receitas futuras de participação nos lucros, mas a receita segundo os GAAP não é reconhecida até que um lote seja vendido ou o financiamento da construção seja iniciado.

Cemitérios e Necrotérios

A receita do 2T aumentou 20,7%, para US$ 9,8 milhões, enquanto o lucro antes dos impostos subiu 69,5%, para US$ 3 milhões. A receita de investimentos saltou 169,5%, para US$ 2 milhões, impulsionada principalmente por maiores ganhos não realizados.

Excluindo os resultados de investimentos, a receita subiu 5,5%, para US$ 7,8 milhões, mas o lucro operacional antes dos impostos recuou 4,8%, para US$ 963.000, devido ao aumento de custos com pessoal, talentos e tecnologia.

A receita de funerárias subiu 7,4%, para US$ 3,5 milhões, enquanto o lucro antes dos impostos diminuiu 3,2%, para US$ 375.000. O número de famílias atendidas cresceu 1,1%, e a receita média por atendimento aumentou 6,2%, para US$ 5.549.

A receita do segmento de cemitérios aumentou 4%, para US$ 4,3 milhões, mas o lucro antes dos impostos recuou 5,8%, para US$ 588.000. As vendas líquidas antecipadas de terrenos aumentaram 6,1%, para US$ 2,34 milhões. O número de sepultamentos/locações subiu 5,1%, para 348, incluindo um crescimento de 12,1% nos sepultamentos tradicionais, que somaram 268.

Riscos e Pontos de Atenção

• A receita consolidada continuou a encolher, mesmo com as reduções de custos e mudanças operacionais sustentando lucros maiores.
• Os empréstimos hipotecários com atraso superior a 90 dias subiram de US$ 6,5 milhões no final do ano para US$ 15,8 milhões.
• A administração afirmou que a menor mortalidade nos EUA estava pressionando o volume de atendimentos e a lucratividade operacional do segmento funerário.
• O resultado de investimentos em seguros de vida seguiu sob pressão diante da menor participação nos lucros de construtoras, liquidação antecipada de empréstimos, concorrência de taxas e redução na originação de empréstimos para construção no início do ano.
• O aumento nos estoques de terrenos adia a receita e o lucro do período atual até que os lotes sejam vendidos ou a construção das casas seja iniciada. A administração indicou que alguns projetos possuem horizontes temporais de 12 a 24 meses ou mais.
• Os lucros de Cemitérios e Necrotérios foram beneficiados por ganhos não realizados de investimentos, e a administração alertou que esses valores podem oscilar em qualquer direção.
• O lucro abrangente continua sensível às variações nas taxas de desconto segundo as regras do LDTI.

Transcrição Completa da Teleconferência de Resultados

Transcrição completa da teleconferência de resultados

Comentários da administração

Heather Street

Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to Security National Financial Corporation's Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. We thank you for joining us today to review our financial and operational results for the period ended June 30, 2026.

Before we begin, I'd like to remind everyone that our remarks today will include forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Such risks include, but are not limited to, changes in economic conditions, interest rates, regulatory developments, competitive pressures and other factors detailed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

We caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of today's date. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise these statements to reflect future events or circumstances, except as required by law.

With that, I'd like to turn the call over to our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Scott Quist. Scott?

Scott Quist

Thank you. Welcome, everyone. I am pleased to report that our second quarter earnings after tax increased 7.3% over 2025 and that our first half earnings increased 8.1% over 2025. This improved profitability for both the quarter and the first half of the year illustrates the very solid operational and sales progress we have made in all of our business segments. It is not lost on me that our top line revenue decreased 6.3% for the quarter and 5% for the half. We are working aggressively and in my view, successfully to address those revenue issues. But our first goal was improved profitability, and we achieved that goal.

Our Mortgage Segment can be considered the star for the first half of 2026, delivering 2 very solid quarters of improved performance. The mortgage segment improved Q1 year-over-year profitability by $1.4 million and then followed that great performance in Q2 with a $1.6 million improvement for a total $3 million profit improvement for the first half of 2026. Revenue did decrease 9% for the first half, which is never our goal, but that decrease highlights the tremendous operational improvements that were accomplished. Obviously, there is a nexus between revenue and profitability. But in this market, if we must choose one or the other, meaning revenue growth or improved profitability, at this juncture, I much prefer the improved profitability. And I will say that is not always my preference, while I always do want to improve profitability. But sometimes it's the time to grow revenue and sometimes it's the time to grow profitability.

A shout out is owed to the entire company for this improved performance. Suffice it to say that all aspects have been worked, worked again and reworked over the last several years, including management structures, margins, marketing, commissions, products, pricing, back office, secondary operations, underwriting and closing and funding to achieve greater efficiencies. Much work remains to be done. But after all the hard work of our team, it is gratifying to see this segment profitable in Q2 and within striking distance of profitability for the year.

Our Cemetery and Mortuary Segment also delivered stellar results, increasing revenue by 21% for the quarter and by 13% for the first half with a corresponding profit improvement of 69% for the quarter and 29% for the first half. As is many times the case, there is much movement going on under the hood in achieving those impressive results. First, the overall backdrop. While it's difficult to precisely quantify at this time, I believe most would agree that the death rate in the United States dropped in 2026 to its lowest level in recent years. The improved mortality experienced in our Life company segment, decreased case count in our funeral funding operation and reviews of our publicly traded peers all reinforce that conclusion.

Thus, looking within this segment at our mortuary only results, while revenue did increase by some 3% for the first half, profitability actually decreased some 9%. We believe that we have generally increased our market share, but it has been a struggle because of this year's declining death rate. However, demonstrating the benefit of diversified income streams, our cemetery-only results showed an 11% revenue improvement with a 17% profitability improvement, basically as a result of improved preneed cemetery sales. Our cemetery preneed sales results show that we are controlling that which we can control, which is leading to overall profit improvement. Many thanks are owed to the considerable effort that has gone into rebuilding our preneed cemetery sales force.

In addition to the improved preneed sales results, we had a $1 million favorable investment tailwind in the second quarter, which reversed the unfavorable investment results we experienced in the first quarter. All in, we achieved a nearly 23% segment net profit margin in the first half, which, in my view, is admirable.

Our Life Insurance segment also made very significant positive progress despite its top line revenue decrease of 5.5% for the first half and a profitability decrease of 13%. I don't believe those numbers are illustrative of the significant progress, which has been accomplished in nearly all facets of our business. Regarding the revenue decrease, there are 2 major components, which are premium revenue, which is the smaller component of the decrease and our investment income revenue. While there are numerous inputs in the reported premium amount, which makes generalizing somewhat hazardous, to me, the premium revenue decline is primarily due to fewer single premium products being sold in 2026, which, in my view, is our least profitable product.

Our modal-pay product sales have actually increased year-to-date, but those effects won't be realized in our financial statements for several periods. As I have noted in prior releases, we have been spending significant time and resources in improving our sales functions, which efforts in my view have been very successful even being measured at this very initial stage. Illustrative of that initial success, first year premium sales are now up versus 2025. We have much work to do, but we have built and are building excellent offerings for the marketplace to include a much improved onboarding process for new sales personnel, ease of application for both the agent and the customer, quicker real-time underwriting decisions, better lead generation and management, more predictable commission and advanced structures and better quality measuring metrics, all resulting in significant first-year traction.

The larger factor in this segment's revenue decline and probably also the larger factor in its profitability decline is its investment income. Specifically, we had lower builder profit split in 2026 vis-a-vis 2025, and also decreased interest income. We have made specific strategic decisions to increase our land holdings, which, in my view, will lead to greater profits in the future, albeit at the cost of current profitability since we recognize no profit on land until it is either sold or a home on it has started construction. Many of our land holdings have a 12 to 24 month, or even longer time horizon. So increasing land holdings does suppress both revenue and profit in the current period in favor of greater profitability in the future.

Regarding the decrease in interest income, this result reflects the impact of loan payoffs, increased rate competition and lower loan origination volumes during Q1. Construction-related loan originations, however, rebounded strongly during Q2. Utah new-home starts were down significantly in 2025, which trend appears to be continuing in 2026, which led to the decreased construction loans. Primarily due to lower loan production, our cash position has increased by some $61 million since December 31, 2025, which does earn bank interest, but at a rate below that of our lending activities.

Despite those declines, I don't believe we've ever had better processes or more talented and capable people in responsible positions than we do today. In summary, I believe we have improved capacity, more talented people, greater wherewithal and better sales offerings in both products and processes than we have ever had. In a nutshell, when viewed as a whole, SNFC increased profitability in the quarter by 7.3% and for the first half by 8.1% despite a decline in revenue. Many thanks to our hardworking teams for achieving those impressive operational results.

Garrett Sill

Thank you, Scott, and good afternoon, and thank you for joining us today. My name is Garrett Sill. I am the Chief Financial Officer of Security National Financial Corporation. This was a good quarter for the company, and I do want to thank all our employees for their efforts and dedication in making Security National a great company. In addition to what Scott shared, I want to highlight a few additional items regarding our consolidated financial statements.

First, on our balance sheet, total assets grew to $1.61 billion as of June 30, 2026, an increase of $47.5 million or 3% compared to year-end. We also saw a 60% increase in cash and cash equivalents, while our combined investment portfolio decreased $13 million or 1.2% to just over $1 billion as we continue to look for opportunities to deploy the elevated cash balances we discussed in our last call and this call. Total liabilities increased $24.8 million or 2.2% to $1.18 billion. Stockholders' equity increased $22.7 million or 5.5% to $433 million. And as a result, our debt-to-equity ratio improved to 2.72x from 2.81x at year-end, reflecting a continued strengthening of our capital position.

Moving to our statement of earnings. Net earnings for the second quarter were approximately $9 million, an increase of nearly $2 million or 28.3% compared to net earnings of $7 million in the first quarter of 2026. On a year-over-year basis, net earnings for the 6 months ended June 30, 2026, increased 8.1% compared to the same period in 2025, which Scott addressed in his remarks. I'd also note that combined commissions and personnel expense, our 2 largest cost categories decreased $4.8 million or 13.5% for the quarter and $8 million or 11.8% year-to-date compared to the same period in 2025, reflecting continued efficiency efforts across our segments. As a reminder, all 2025 figures referenced today have been revised to reflect our adoption of LDTI, so these quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year comparisons are being made on a consistent basis.

Speaking of LDTI, I'd like to draw your attention to our statement of comprehensive income, which showed a notable divergence between our quarterly and year-to-date results this quarter. For the 6 months ended June 30, 2026, comprehensive income totaled $22.4 million, an increase of 86.6% compared to the $12 million for the same period last year. This year-to-date improvement was driven primarily by the interest rate remeasurement of our future policy benefits under LDTI, which swung from a $10.2 million charge to other comprehensive income in the first half of 2025 to a $12.9 million benefit in the first half of 2026, a favorable swing of approximately $23 million tied to the discount rate movements.

I would note, however, that on a stand-alone quarterly basis, comprehensive income for the second quarter of 2026 was $7.3 million, down 18.2% from $8.9 million in the second quarter of 2025. So while our year-to-date comprehensive income trend is strongly positive, the core trend moved in the opposite direction this quarter, a good reminder of how sensitive this measure is to discount rate movements from period to period and why we continue to encourage you to review both the quarterly and year-to-date statement of comprehensive income.

Turning to credit quality. Our fixed maturity security portfolio remains high in quality with 98.4% rated investment grade as of June 30, 2026, essentially unchanged from 98.5% at year-end. Only 1.6% of our total bond portfolio or approximately $6 million was held in noninvestment-grade categories, consistent with year-end. On the mortgage loan side, loans more than 90 days past due increased to $15.8 million as of June 30, 2026, from $6.5 million at year-end. Our allowance for credit losses on mortgage loan portfolio remains appropriately reserved, and we are monitoring this trend closely.

In closing, the second quarter 2026 was a good quarter for the company as we again saw growth in total assets, stockholders' equity and net earnings, both sequentially and year-over-year. Regarding our internal controls over financial reporting, we continue to test, improve and remediate where needed. And as has been noted, we continue to focus on growing top line while also improving overall profitability.

Next, we'll hear from Andrew Quist, President and Chief Executive Officer of Security National Mortgage.

Scott Quist

Thank you, Garrett, and good afternoon, fellow shareholders. I'm Andrew Quist, President and CEO of Security National Mortgage Company. In the second quarter of 2026, Security National Mortgage Company had a pretax net income of $71,000 compared to a pretax net loss of $1,671,000 in the second quarter of 2025. This was a year-over-year increase of $1,742,000 or 104% from last year's results. While the net income result is modest, I was particularly proud of our first profitable quarter since Q3 of 2025. Furthermore, the over $3 million improvement year-to-date is noteworthy. This is evidence that the tireless work and effort of our employees have put in, in reshaping Security National Mortgage Company over the past several years is paying off.

Continuing our recent trend, this improvement in net income and profitability came on reduced year-over-year origination volumes. In the second quarter of 2026, we originated $548 million of loan volume compared to $617 million in the second quarter of 2025, an 11% year-over-year decrease.

On a sequential quarter basis, origination volumes were up 12%. Based on the Mortgage Bankers Association's reported total industry origination volumes for the second quarter, SNMC's market share increased to 10 basis points, up from 9 basis points in Q1. The sequential quarter increase in origination volume outpaced the overall industry origination volume increase as indicated by our increased market share. While the year-over-year decline continues to be impacted by the company separating from a large group of loan originators in the third quarter of last year. While the separation has negatively impacted origination volumes, it's contributed significantly to our profitability.

As interest rates rose steadily through much of the second quarter, SNMC's purchase transaction volume remains strong. While refinance volume and percentage of overall volume declined from multiyear highs in Q1, both refinance volume and refinance percentage of overall volume were up over Q2 in 2025, 17% refinance percentage in Q2 2026 versus 14% refinance percentage in Q2 2025. I believe this shows tangible proof that our increased focus on repeat borrowers over the past 9 months has been effective. In 2026, our percentage of borrowers who are repeat borrowers is higher than it's been in the past 3-plus years. This percentage should continue to increase as we strengthen our skill set in serving past borrowers of SNMC with their future lending needs, whatever they may be.

A corollary of this activity is offering our past borrowers home equity lines of credit, helping them tap the historic equity in today's housing market. We have averaged 1 HELOC transaction a day in the second quarter, up from virtually 0 as recently as the fourth quarter in 2025.

In summary, in the second quarter of 2026, Security National had pretax net income of $71,000 despite lower origination volumes year-over-year. This was the first profitable quarter for SNMC since Q3 of 2025. I believe a quick survey of other publicly traded retail independent mortgage banks second quarter results will further demonstrate the strength of our profitable quarter. I'd like to conclude by thanking our loan officers and employees for their wonderful work improving Security National in this challenging environment. The progress is exciting, and I couldn't be more proud. Thank you.

I'll now turn the time over to Adam Quist.

Adam Quist

Thank you, Andrew, and congratulations on the profitable quarter and the improvement. As Andrew mentioned, my name is Adam Quist, and I'm the President and CEO of the Security National Life Insurance Company. My remarks today will focus on how our life companies have performed year-to-date with some additional context on the second quarter itself.

For the 6 months ended June 30, 2026, our Life segment generated total revenues of approximately $98.4 million compared to $104 million a year ago or a decrease of about 5%. Net earnings before taxes were $16.1 million compared to $18.6 million, a decrease of approximately 13%. For the second quarter alone, revenues were approximately $49.5 million versus $53.4 million and net earnings before taxes were $8.5 million versus $10.6 million. Those are real decreases and decreases are, of course, not our goal. But in my opinion, when evaluating our company's performance, it is also worth retaining the context that 2025 was our best operational year in our company's history. And year-to-date, 2026 is our second best operating year in our company's history. I believe our team is executing well, making deliberate choices and building towards a stronger future.

I now want to discuss the main factors driving those top line numbers. As Scott mentioned, the pressure on our top line this year is concentrated in 2 identifiable places, namely a decrease in single premiums and lower net investment income, primarily associated with homebuilder profit share. Let me start with the smaller of the 2 factors, premiums. For the 6 months, insurance premiums and other considerations were approximately $57.6 million compared to $60 million a year ago, a decrease of about 4%. In the second quarter, premiums were $28.7 million versus $30.2 million, a decrease of roughly 5%.

The largest single factor of the year-to-date decline is our single premium business. Single premium is our least profitable product. And as we have discussed before, we are currently emphasizing growing our modal-pay sales, which we believe is the business that builds more durable value over time. Our renewal premium base, the truest measure of the health of our in-force book, grew year-to-date, up about 1.5% on our individual whole life block. This means our existing policyholders are staying with us, persistency remains solid and the foundation of our business is strong.

Looking at our year-to-date new sales results, our first year modal-pay premium production, or in other words, the multi-pay new business we are writing this year is now running ahead of where it was at this point last year. It is important to keep in mind, however, that because modal premiums feather into our financial statements gradually over time as the policyholders make their monthly premium payments, it will take time for this increase in modal-pay sales to show up in our reported premium revenues. But this increase reflects the early-stage success of the sales leadership changes we have made and the investments in our distribution platforms we've been making over the last 2 years.

Now let me turn to the largest factor affecting both our revenue and net income, our net investment income. For the 6 months, net investment income was $33.4 million compared to $38.6 million, a decrease of about $5.2 million or 14%. In the second quarter, it was $15.7 million versus $20 million, down roughly 21%. There are 2 distinct pieces at play here, and I want to separate them clearly because they behave differently. The largest single factor is a decline in homebuilder profit share income, which on a net basis was down about $2.8 million year-to-date and about $2.5 million in the second quarter alone. The second factor is interest and fee income associated with our residential construction lending, which was down about $1 million on the quarter and about $1.1 million year-to-date.

However, I should point out that construction loan origination activity picked up meaningfully during the second quarter after a slower start to the year, which we view as an encouraging sign heading into the second half, even though it has not yet fully worked its way through to our outstanding balances and reported interest income. We have deliberately grown our investment in land and residential subdivision development to approximately $122 million as of June 30, up from about $98 million at year-end. That capital is not yet generating reported investment income under GAAP since that only happens once a lot is sold or a construction loan is originated, but we view it as a leading indicator of future builder profit sharing income. We believe this capital is deployed in projects that will result in greater profitability in future periods, even if it is not showing up on our current numbers.

Gains on our equities and other assets were $3.7 million year-to-date compared to $1.2 million a year ago, an approximate $2.5 million increase, which was driven mainly by a $1.9 million increase in unrealized gains in our equity portfolio relative to 2025. These are market-driven and can move in either direction, but they have partially offset the headwinds I just described in our builder profit share income and speak to the quality of the portfolio we hold and the benefits of having a diversified investment strategy. We also saw a year-over-year increase in realized gains on real estate of about $850,000 as a result of construction starts or lot sales.

Turning to expenses. I am pleased with the discipline our team continues to show. Total selling, general and administrative expenses for the segment were down about 3.3% year-to-date to $25.9 million from $26.8 million and down 3.4% in the second quarter alone. Personnel expense increased modestly, up about 2.8% year-to-date and 3.2% in the second quarter. That increase is intentional and reflects our continued investment in sales leadership talent, the same investment that is driving the modal-pay sales trend I mentioned earlier. I am encouraged that our overall expense base is stable even as we continue to invest in the people and systems that will grow this business.

Policyholder benefits and claims were also lower, down about 4% year-to-date and roughly 5% in the second quarter, reflecting continued favorable claims experience. That is a credit to our underwriting and claims teams and reflects mortality and surrender experience that remains close to pre-COVID trends. All total benefits and expenses for the segment were down about 3.7% year-to-date.

In closing, year-to-date, our revenue and earnings are lower because we shifted deliberately away from our least profitable premium product and saw a sharp though partially offset decline in builder profit sharing income. I believe our company's foundation is strong. Our team is making deliberate decisions, exercising discipline, strengthening our sales force and making investments that position ourselves for better performance in the future. While I recognize that our year-to-date numbers are down from 2025, we are still experiencing our second best operational year in the company's history, a testament to the great work of our team. I remain confident in the direction of our life companies and in the team executing our strategy. I look forward to sharing our continued progress with you on future calls. Thank you for your continued support.

I will now turn the time over to Steve Kehl to discuss our funeral home and cemetery division.

Steven Kehl

Thank you, Adam. Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Steve Kehl, Chief Operating Officer of Security National's Funeral Homes and Cemeteries. Today, I'll walk you through our second quarter results as Scott has touched on several first half comparisons in his remarks.

For the second quarter, earnings before tax increased 69.5% to $3 million from $1.8 million a year ago. Revenue increased 20.7% to $9.8 million from the $8.1 million a year ago. Now as Scott noted is looking under the hood, I want to be clear at the outset about what is driving what. That growth in our earnings before tax came from investments. Excluding our investment results, our revenue increased 5.5% in the second quarter of 2026 from $7.4 million to $7.8 million, and operating earnings before tax decreased 4.8% to $963,000 from just over $1 million. Our operating businesses grew revenue and improved on several key indicators. At the same time, we absorbed deliberate investments in both talent and technology. Those investments carry costs today, and they are intended to support growth and efficiency going forward.

As we review our funeral homes, revenue increased 7.4% to $3.5 million from $3.3 million, while earnings before tax decreased 3.2% to $375,000. Our earnings before tax declined because costs outpaced revenue. Total operating costs increased 8.8% against revenue growth of 7.4%. I want to be direct about that cost increase. It was led by compensation, and that was a decision, not a surprise. We have invested in talent in this segment, and that investment is already showing up in our customer service experience feedback.

Three metrics matter most to us in this segment, and all 3 moved in the right direction. Families served increased 1.1%. Average revenue per call increased $323 or 6.2% to $5,549. And the share of cremation families choosing a memorial or funeral service rose to 41.9%. That last measure is one we are pushing the hardest on because we know a cremation with a service is a better experience for the family and a better economic outcome for us. However, even at an impressive 49.9%, we have room to improve. The work from here is to leverage what we have already invested in our people, our training and our technology across a growing revenue base and to convert that into stronger margins as we continue to navigate a headwind of declining death rates.

In cemeteries, revenue increased 4% to $4.3 million from $4.1 million, while earnings before tax decreased 5.8% to $588,000. Earnings before tax declined because costs once again outpaced revenue. Cost of goods sold increased 3.1% as we face ongoing wholesale margin pressures and operating expenses increased 6.7%. The main driver within our revenue growth was from our net preneed land sales increasing 6.1% to $2.34 million. Within the quarter, we continued to focus on our prospecting metrics, community seminars and providing events within our memorial parks. Also important to note that our interment activity within our memorial parks was also positive. Placements increased 5.1% to 348. Even more impressive within that figure, I felt it was important to note that traditional interments in the quarter increased 12.1% to 268. So we saw increase in both volume and a richer mix.

Our priorities in cemeteries are consistent. We will continue to focus on building family relationships, generating steady preneed production, sharpening our sales execution, recruiting talent, maintain our properties well and keep adding capacity through garden developments. As noted, our investment revenue increased 169.5% to $2 million from $758,000 a year ago. The increase was driven primarily by higher unrealized gains within our portfolio. Now we are pleased with that contribution, but we are also clear-eyed about it. Unrealized gains can move in either direction. That is why we evaluate our operating businesses separately from short-term changes in investment valuations and why I have intentionally separated the 2 for you today.

Stepping back, this quarter showed both progress and opportunity. Reported earnings benefited significantly from investment performance, while operating profitability came in slightly below the prior year. Underneath that, families served revenue per call, cremation with service, cemetery preneed land production and interment activity all improved. Our job now is to control what we can control and convert those operating improvements into earnings growth.

In closing, I want to thank our funeral homes, cemetery grounds and operational support teams. The results that I just described are their work. It is an honor to work alongside such talented professionals. We are realistic about what lies ahead, encouraged by the underlying business and confident that consistent execution creates long-term value for our shareholders. Thank you for your time and your continued confidence.

I'll now turn the time back over to Heather Street, our Vice President of Human Resources.

Heather Street

Thank you, Steve. Before we conclude today's call, we would like to open the floor for questions. As a reminder, to ask a question, please use the Zoom platform to raise your hand to unmute or you may submit questions through the Zoom Q&A panel, include your name and organization and will take us as many as time permits.

Not seeing any questions. Are there any further questions either in the chat or if you'd like to unmute.

All right. If we have no questions, we'll note the end of our Q&A. Thank you again for your participation. We value engagement and thoughtful input. For more information about the meeting, our latest financial reports or any other investor materials, we invite you to visit the Investor Relations section of our website at www.securitynational.com. We appreciate your continued support of Security National Financial Corporation.

This concludes our second quarter 2026 earnings call. We look forward to speaking with you again soon. Thank you, and have a great day.