Key Highlights

● SS&C slid to about $85.62 after hours, from a regular close of $89.54.

● The after-hours price is not a closing price.

● Record adjusted EBITDA reached $674.8 million, with adjusted earnings of $1.78 a share.

● The midpoint of fourth-quarter organic growth guidance trailed the third-quarter pace.

Shares of SS&C Technologies (NASDAQ:SSNC) slid after the bell on Thursday, October 22, 2026, falling to about $85.62 in after-hours trading following the company's third-quarter report. The stock had closed the regular session at $89.54, after rising during the day.

The after-hours move took place after the 4pm ET close, so it is not a closing price. The shares fell on the company's fourth-quarter outlook despite record EBITDA.

Record numbers on the scoreboard

On the headline figures, SS&C had a strong quarter. The financial software and services company reported record adjusted EBITDA of $674.8 million. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $1.78, up solidly from a year earlier. The company also raised its full-year guidance.

Chief executive Bill Stone struck an upbeat tone. "Our clients are no longer asking whether to transform. They are asking how fast, and with whom," he said.

Based on the regular-session close of $89.54, the after-hours price of about $85.62 represented a decline of roughly $3.92 a share.

The growth question

The sticking point was the outlook for organic growth, which strips out the effect of acquisitions and gives a cleaner read on how the underlying business is expanding. The midpoint of SS&C's fourth-quarter organic growth forecast came in below the pace it delivered in the third quarter.

Investors often value software and services firms on the durability of their growth. A slowdown in that measure, even alongside record profits and higher annual guidance, can outweigh the good news. That appears to be how the market read SS&C's report after the bell.

A day that rewarded some software names

The regular session had been kinder to SS&C. Its shares rose during the day even as the Nasdaq Composite tumbled. Software and cybersecurity stocks such as HubSpot (NYSE:HUBS), Monday.com, Workday (NASDAQ:WDAY) and CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) gained even as chip stocks slumped.

The index itself had a rough day. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 26,008.86, down 694.00 points, its steepest drop since June 5. The slide ended a seven-session winning streak and erased about $1 trillion in market value, according to market data.

The pressure came from AI and chip stocks. The heavy spending plans from Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) and Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX)'s supply-constrained outlook revived concerns about the cost of the AI build-out. IBM (NYSE:IBM)'s chief executive added to the debate; he said customers "are also getting worried if some of the AI spending is completely out of control with no real return."

Elsewhere, about two of every three S&P 500 stocks rose, according to market reports, as money rotated into consumer staples, health care, utilities and financials.

Other after-hours movers

SS&C was one of several companies whose shares moved after the bell on results. RingCentral (NYSE:RNG) jumped after beating forecasts and raising its full-year profit outlook, while Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC), Deckers (NYSE:DECK), Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) and Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE) fell, according to market data. After-hours trading is typically thin, and moves can change once the regular session opens.

SS&C Faces Friday's Open and a Growth Question

The first test is whether SS&C's after-hours decline holds when regular trading resumes on Friday. Investors will also look for more detail on the company's growth outlook and its plans for next year. Market-wide, the Federal Reserve announces its decision on Wednesday, October 28, the same day Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) report.