NerdWallet, Inc. (NRDS) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the NerdWallet, Inc. first-quarter 2026 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded.

各位好，感謝您的等候。歡迎參加 NerdWallet, Inc. 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。（接線員指示）敬請注意，今日會議將被錄音。

I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Robb Ferris, VP of Finance. Please go ahead.

現在我想將會議交給今天的第一位講者，財務副總裁 Robb Ferris。請開始。

Thank you, operator. Welcome to the NerdWallet Q1 2026 earnings call. Joining us today are Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Tim Chen; and Chief Financial Officer, Jun Lee.

謝謝，接線員。歡迎參加 NerdWallet 2026 年第一季（Q1）財報電話會議。今天與會者包括共同創辦人兼執行長 Tim Chen，以及財務長 Jun Lee。

Our press release and shareholder letter are available on our Investor Relations website, and a replay of this update will also be available following the conclusion of today's call. We intend to use our Investor Relations website as a means of disclosing certain material information and complying with disclosure obligations under SEC Regulation FD from time to time.

我們的新聞稿與致股東信已發布於投資人關係網站；本次更新內容的重播也將在今日電話會議結束後提供。我們擬不時使用投資人關係網站作為揭露特定重大資訊之方式，並遵循美國證券交易委員會（SEC）Regulation FD 的資訊揭露義務。

As a reminder, today's call is being webcast live and recorded.

提醒各位，今日電話會議將進行即時網路直播並錄音。

Before we begin today's remarks and question-and-answer session, I would like to remind you that certain statements made during this call may relate to future events and expectations and as such, constitute forward-looking statements. Actual results and performance may differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements as a result of various risks and uncertainties, including the risk factors discussed in reports filed or to be filed with the SEC.

在開始今天的發言與問答環節之前，我想提醒各位，本次電話會議中所作的某些陳述可能涉及未來事件與預期，因此構成前瞻性陳述。由於各種風險與不確定性（包括已向或將向 SEC 提交之報告中所討論的風險因素），實際結果與表現可能與這些前瞻性陳述所明示或暗示者有所不同。

We urge you to consider these risk factors and remind you that we undertake no obligation to update the information provided on this call to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

我們敦促各位考量這些風險因素，並提醒各位，我們不承擔更新本次電話會議所提供資訊以反映後續事件或情況的任何義務。

You should be aware that these statements should not be considered a guarantee of future performance. Furthermore, during this call, we will present both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures is included in today's earnings press release, except where we are unable without reasonable efforts to calculate certain reconciling items with confidence.

您應了解，這些陳述不應被視為對未來表現的保證。此外，在本次電話會議中，我們將同時呈現 GAAP 與非 GAAP 財務衡量指標。GAAP 與非 GAAP 指標之調節表載於今日的財報新聞稿中；惟在未能於合理努力下有把握計算某些調節項目時，則不包含該等調節。

With that, I will now turn it over to Tim Chen, our Co-Founder and CEO. Tim?

接下來，我將把時間交給我們的共同創辦人兼執行長 Tim Chen。Tim？

Thanks, Robb. We reported revenue of $222 million for the first quarter, up 6% year over year. Within our Consumer vertical, we saw continued year-over-year growth in banking, driven by robust demand for savings accounts. Personal loans revenue was also significantly higher in Q1 year over year. These positives were partially offset by a year-over-year decline in credit cards.

謝謝，Robb。我們第一季營收為 2.22 億美元，年增 6%。在消費者（Consumer）垂直領域方面，我們的銀行業務持續年增，主要受惠於儲蓄帳戶的強勁需求。個人貸款營收在第一季也較去年同期顯著提高。上述正面因素部分被信用卡業務的年減所抵銷。

Within our SMB vertical, we saw year-over-year declines driven by organic search headwinds. Non-GAAP operating income of $34 million and adjusted EBITDA of $45 million set new Q1 records, driven by strong operating leverage on our fixed cost base and lower other marketing spend.

在中小企業（SMB）垂直領域方面，我們因自然搜尋（organic search）逆風而出現年減。非 GAAP 營業利益為 3,400 萬美元，調整後 EBITDA 為 4,500 萬美元，雙雙創下第一季新高，主要受惠於固定成本基礎上的強勁營運槓桿，以及其他行銷支出降低。

As we look ahead, we are affirming the high end of our full year NGOI guidance range, but taking a more conservative view on the lower end of the range to reflect two dynamics that are adding uncertainty to near-term results.

展望未來，我們維持全年非 GAAP 營業利益（NGOI）指引區間的上緣不變，但對區間下緣採取更保守的看法，以反映兩項使短期結果不確定性增加的動態。

First, in auto insurance, monetization from one of our large partners started running below our expectations, which impacted our Q1 results and is expected to have a greater impact in Q2. While this business can be volatile on a quarter-to-quarter basis, we're encouraged by the strong macro outlook for auto insurance customer acquisition spend.

第一，在汽車保險方面，我們與其中一家大型合作夥伴的變現（monetization）表現開始低於預期，影響了第一季結果，且預期在第二季影響更大。雖然此業務在季度之間可能波動，但我們對汽車保險客戶獲取支出（customer acquisition spend）的整體宏觀前景感到鼓舞。

Against this healthy backdrop, we are deepening our technology integrations with several auto insurance carriers and expanding our offering with agent-centric carrier partners through phone-based referrals.

在此健康的背景下，我們正與多家汽車保險承保公司（carriers）深化技術整合，並透過以代理人為中心的承保公司合作夥伴，藉由電話式轉介（phone-based referrals）擴大我們的產品與服務。

We are also investing to build out our branded agency, NerdWallet Insurance Experts. We believe that these investments will create a more diversified and resilient base from which we'll grow in the future.

我們也正在投資打造自有品牌代理機構 NerdWallet Insurance Experts。我們相信，這些投資將建立更為多元且更具韌性的基礎，支持我們未來成長。

Second, we've decided to be more aggressive in placing our long-term bets. We believe our brand and distribution moats represent a growing advantage as less powerful brands struggle to reach consumers efficiently while AI simultaneously reduces the cost of offering financial products. This is creating a unique investment window for NerdWallet.

第二，我們決定更積極地投入長期押注。我們相信，當較弱勢的品牌難以有效率地觸及消費者之際，我們的品牌與通路護城河（distribution moats）正形成日益增長的優勢；同時，AI 也在降低提供金融產品的成本。這為 NerdWallet 創造了一個獨特的投資窗口期。

While this environment is increasingly challenging for newer entrants and single product companies, our trusted brand leaves us in a strong position to capitalize on our massive consumer reach and distribution network. Whether we're evaluating corp dev opportunities or building offerings like NerdWallet Insurance Experts, we believe we are in a sweet spot to generate attractive long-term returns on these investments.

雖然此環境對新進者與單一產品公司愈發具挑戰性，但我們值得信賴的品牌使我們處於有利位置，得以運用龐大的消費者觸及規模與通路網路。不論是在評估企業發展（corp dev）機會，或是打造如 NerdWallet Insurance Experts 之類的服務，我們都相信自己正處於甜蜜點，能為這些投資創造具吸引力的長期報酬。

And now I will pass it over to John to cover our financial results in more detail.

接下來我將把時間交給 John，請他更詳細說明我們的財務結果。

Thanks, Tim. Before I walk through the results in detail, a quick reminder on the reporting change we discussed last quarter and which took effect today. Beginning this quarter, we're presenting revenue in two categories: Consumer and SMB.

謝謝，Tim。在我詳細說明結果之前，先快速提醒一下我們在上季討論過、並於今日生效的報導方式變更。自本季起，我們將營收以兩大類別呈現：Consumer 與 SMB。

Consumer combines what we previously reported as insurance, credit cards, loans and emerging verticals. SMB remains unchanged. Prior period amounts have been restated under this new presentation.

Consumer 合併了我們先前揭露的保險、信用卡、貸款與新興垂直領域。SMB 則維持不變。過往期間金額已依此新呈列方式重編。

Turning to the top line. Total revenue in Q1 was $222 million, up 6% year over year. Consumer revenue was $198 million, up 10% year over year, driven by banking and personal loans and partially offset by consumer credit cards, primarily due to organic search headwinds. SMB revenue was $25 million, down 15% year over year, driven primarily by organic search revenue declines in SMB products, partially offset by revenue growth in loan originations.

回到營收表現。第一季總營收為 2.22 億美元，年增 6%。Consumer 營收為 1.98 億美元，年增 10%，主要由銀行與個人貸款帶動，並部分被消費者信用卡所抵銷，主因為自然搜尋逆風。SMB 營收為 2,500 萬美元，年減 15%，主要因 SMB 產品的自然搜尋營收下滑所致，並部分被貸款承作（loan originations）營收成長所抵銷。

Moving to profitability. Q1 GAAP operating income was $27 million compared to $1 million in the prior year quarter. NGOI was $34 million at a 15% margin, up from $9 million at a 4% margin in Q1 2025 and above our guidance range of $28 million to $32 million. The year-over-year improvement was primarily driven by lower other marketing expenses on lower brand spend, partially offset by higher performance marketing spend.

接著看獲利能力。第一季 GAAP 營業利益為 2,700 萬美元，去年同期為 100 萬美元。NGOI 為 3,400 萬美元、利潤率 15%，高於 2025 年第一季的 900 萬美元、利潤率 4%，且高於我們 2,800 萬至 3,200 萬美元的指引區間。年增改善主要來自其他行銷費用下降（品牌支出降低），但部分被績效行銷支出增加所抵銷。

Recall that we did not repeat a Super Bowl ad this year, which was the primary cause of the decline in our other marketing spend year over year. As we have seen in the past quarters, brand spend tends to fluctuate quarter over quarter and is dependent on timing of brand campaigns and market conditions.

提醒各位，我們今年未重播超級盃廣告，這是其他行銷支出年減的主要原因。如同過去幾季所見，品牌支出往往會隨季度波動，並取決於品牌活動的時點與市場狀況。

Q1 adjusted EBITDA was $45 million. Turning to cash flow and capital allocation. We ended the quarter with $56 million of cash and cash equivalents, down from $98 million at year-end in 2025. During the quarter, we generated $40 million of adjusted free cash flow, offset by $17 million of cash consideration for the College Finance acquisition that closed in February as well as $66 million of share repurchases in the quarter.

第一季調整後 EBITDA 為 4,500 萬美元。接著看現金流與資本配置。本季末我們持有現金及約當現金 5,600 萬美元，較 2025 年底的 9,800 萬美元下降。本季我們產生 4,000 萬美元的調整後自由現金流，但被 2 月完成交割的 College Finance 收購案 1,700 萬美元現金對價，以及本季 6,600 萬美元的庫藏股回購所抵銷。

Please note that the contributions from the College Finance acquisition were not material to first quarter revenue or operating income. Our trailing 12-month adjusted free cash flow of $131 million was up 125% year over year, a testament to the strong cash flow characteristics of our business model.

請注意，College Finance 收購案對第一季營收或營業利益的貢獻並不重大。我們過去 12 個月的調整後自由現金流為 1.31 億美元，年增 125%，顯示我們商業模式具備強勁的現金流特性。

Our diluted weighted average share count was down 9% year over year due to our share repurchase activity, and we will continue to evaluate share repurchases alongside other uses of capital. As of March 31, we had $90 million remaining under our share repurchase authorization.

由於我們的庫藏股回購活動，稀釋後加權平均股數年減 9%；我們將持續在庫藏股回購與其他資本用途之間進行評估。截至 3 月 31 日，我們在股票回購授權額度下尚餘 9,000 萬美元。

Turning to guidance. We expect to deliver second quarter revenue in the range of $186 million to $202 million, up 4% year over year at the midpoint. In terms of profitability, we expect non-GAAP operating income in the range of $6 million to $14 million.

接著看指引。我們預期第二季營收介於 1.86 億至 2.02 億美元之間，以中位數計年增 4%。在獲利方面，我們預期非 GAAP 營業利益介於 600 萬至 1,400 萬美元之間。

As a reminder, Q2 is typically our seasonally softest quarter, and our guidance reflects this as well as our deliberate increase in vertical integration investments to drive long-term growth.

提醒各位，第二季通常是我們季節性最疲弱的一季；我們的指引亦反映此一季節性因素，以及我們為推動長期成長而刻意增加垂直整合投資的規劃。

For the full year, we're guiding to an NGOI expectation between $85 million and $110 million. We're reaffirming the upper end of our previously issued guidance range with the expectation that we will continue to grow revenue year over year in each of the remaining quarters of 2026, supported by continued performance marketing-led growth in banking, personal loans and other products, resulting in full year revenue growth in the mid- to high single digits year over year.

就全年而言，我們預期 NGOI 將介於 8,500 萬美元至 1.10 億美元之間。我們重申先前發布之指引區間的上緣，並預期在 2026 年剩餘各季，我們將持續實現營收年增，這將受惠於銀行、個人貸款及其他產品由績效行銷帶動的持續成長，從而帶動全年營收年增達中至高個位數百分比。

In addition to top-line growth, we expect NGOI to be supported by ongoing corporate G&A expense discipline. However, we're reducing the low end of the range, which now reflects planned investments to accelerate our vertical integration strategy and to reflect uncertainty as it relates to monetization with one of our large auto insurance partners.

除營收成長外，我們預期 NGOI 亦將受惠於持續的公司一般與行政（G&A）費用紀律。然而，我們下調區間下緣；目前下緣反映了為加速我們的垂直整合策略而規劃的投資，並反映與我們某家大型汽車保險合作夥伴之變現相關的不確定性。

As Tim mentioned, we're increasingly confident that these investments not only have the potential to accelerate our growth and generate attractive returns for our shareholders, but to create a more diversified and resilient NerdWallet over time.

如 Tim 所提到的，我們對這些投資愈來愈有信心：它們不僅有潛力加速我們的成長並為股東帶來具吸引力的回報，也能在時間推移下打造更為多元且更具韌性的 NerdWallet。

With that, we'll open it up for Q&A.

接下來，我們開放問答。

(Operator Instructions) Justin Patterson, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

（接線員指示）Justin Patterson，KeyBanc Capital Markets。

This is Miles Jakubiak on for Justin. I wanted to dive deeper in on the acceleration of investments in the vertical integration. Just curious if you could give more context around what you saw or what changed that led you to want to push the pedal on some more investment in these areas?

我是代替 Justin 的 Miles Jakubiak。我想更深入了解在垂直整合方面加速投資的部分。想請教你們能否提供更多背景：你們看到了什麼、或有哪些變化，促使你們想在這些領域加大投資力道？

And then any more context you can provide around just where these dollars are going within the vertical integration strategy would be helpful?

另外，若能就這些資金在垂直整合策略中具體投向哪些方面提供更多說明，也會很有幫助。

Thanks for the question, Miles. Yes. So high level, the cost of launching financial products is decreasing rapidly as everything from software to call centers, to capital markets is getting more efficient. Meanwhile, the cost of distribution is going up. That means now more than ever, distribution is king.

謝謝你的提問，Miles。是的。從高層次來看，推出金融產品的成本正在快速下降，因為從軟體、客服中心到資本市場等各環節都變得更有效率。與此同時，分發／獲客的成本卻在上升。這意味著現在比以往任何時候都更是「通路為王」。

And so as a result, a lot of bright entrepreneurs, whether internal to NerdWallet or external are seeing NerdWallet is a great place to build. So we have a really unique investment window. I mean, from the corp dev side, we're seeing a lot of people coming to us who value our distribution, who have built great products.

因此，許多優秀的創業者——不論是 NerdWallet 內部或外部——都認為 NerdWallet 是一個很適合打造產品的平台。所以我們正處於一個非常獨特的投資窗口。我的意思是，從企業發展（corp dev）的角度，我們看到很多人主動找上我們，他們重視我們的通路能力，且已打造出很棒的產品。

So we're also considering building a lot of things ourselves as well.

所以我們也在考慮自行打造許多項目。

(Operator Instructions) Michael Infante, Morgan Stanley.

（接線員指示）Michael Infante，Morgan Stanley。

Yes. Two ones for me. I'll ask them both at the same time. Are you able to parse how much of the full year low-end NGOI reduction is driven by the monetization dynamics versus the incremental investment?

是的。我有兩個問題，我一起問。你們能否拆解一下：全年 NGOI 指引下緣下調中，有多少是由變現動態所驅動，多少是由新增投資所致？

And then, Tim, just on the incremental investment, you obviously gave some commentary there. I mean, we're in, obviously, the middle of a pretty significant sort of structural profitability change in the business with the mix shift towards performance marketing. Can you just sort of walk us through the work that you guys have done internally to get comfortable with the returns that you intend to deliver here?

另外，Tim，關於新增投資，你剛才已做了一些評論。我的意思是，我們顯然正處於公司因組合轉向績效行銷而帶來的、相當顯著的結構性獲利變化之中。你能否帶我們了解一下，你們內部做了哪些工作，讓你們對預期可交付的回報感到有把握？

Thank you for the question. So just -- on the NGOI full year guidance question, so we are reaffirming the upper end of our issued -- previously issued guidance range with the expectation that we'll continue to grow revenue year over year each in the remaining quarters.

謝謝你的提問。先就全年 NGOI 指引的問題而言，我們重申先前發布之指引區間的上緣，並預期在剩餘各季將持續實現營收年增。

So in terms of the low end of the range, we assume that at the low end of the range that we're not able to offset the insurance weakness for the entire year, and we continue to invest further into our vertical investment strategy, whereas the high end of the range represents that we are able to offset the insurance weakness in the second half of the year while we identify fewer investment opportunities in our vertical investment strategy.

至於區間下緣，我們假設在下緣情境下，我們無法在全年抵消保險業務的疲弱，同時我們會持續加大對垂直投資策略的投入；而區間上緣則代表我們能在下半年抵消保險疲弱，同時在垂直投資策略中辨識到較少的投資機會。

Yes. I'll take the second part of that. But maybe first, I'll give a little more color on the insurance as well. So I mean, one of our large carriers pulled back in March, and we have a lot of concentration towards a few carriers currently and a few channels, right? So taking a step back, even after growing our insurance business several fold over the past few years, we're still a relatively new player in this market and have a pretty high concentration.

是的。我來回答第二部分。不過也許我先補充一些保險方面的細節。我的意思是，我們其中一家大型保險公司在 3 月縮減了投入，而我們目前對少數幾家保險公司以及少數幾個通路的集中度很高，對吧？所以退一步看，即便過去幾年我們的保險業務已成長了好幾倍，我們在這個市場仍相對是新進者，且集中度仍然偏高。

So we're really investing in growing additional carriers, but we're also starting to sell directly to agents, and that's a new business for us. And that rounds out our core quick offerings with calls and leads and enables us to open up additional channels. In terms of the IRR analysis, we have -- we obviously want to exceed our cost of capital when we're doing things like vertical integration.

因此我們正大力投資以拓展更多保險公司合作夥伴，同時也開始直接向保險代理人銷售，而這對我們而言是一項新業務。這也讓我們以電話與名單（leads）為核心的快速供給更完整，並使我們能開拓更多通路。至於 IRR 分析，我們——在進行垂直整合這類事項時——顯然希望能超過我們的資本成本。

And our cost of capital is pretty high, right? Like if you look at our free cash flow yield versus our market cap and our growth rate, that's a pretty high hurdle to get over. So I think what's kind of unique for us is we have that big top of funnel.

而我們的資本成本相當高，對吧？例如若你看我們的自由現金流殖利率相對於市值以及成長率，那是一個相當高的門檻需要跨越。所以我認為我們比較獨特之處在於，我們擁有很大的漏斗頂端流量。

When we're looking at things from a corp dev perspective, we can do commercial testing with partners and get a pretty good sense of how that's going to shake out. And when we're building internally, yes, with all the new tools and infrastructure that's available now, you can build pretty incredible stuff with pretty small teams. So both of those are affecting the cost side of the IRR calculation.

當我們從企業發展的角度評估時，我們可以與合作夥伴進行商業測試，並相當清楚地掌握結果可能如何發展。而當我們內部自行開發時，是的，隨著現在可用的新工具與基礎設施，你可以用相當小的團隊打造非常驚人的產品。因此，這兩者都在影響 IRR 計算中的成本端。

(Operator Instructions) Ralph Schackart, William Blair.

（接線員指示）Ralph Schackart，William Blair。

Just maybe piggybacking off that last question on insurance. Can you maybe just give us a sense or a better understanding of the investment needed in terms of the dollars and/or the duration of this investment? Is this going to be a multi-quarter cycle or something that you think could be, I guess, sort of quickly built to add that additional carrier capacity?

我想延續上一題關於保險的問題。你能否讓我們更了解所需投資的規模——以金額和／或投資期間來看？這會是一個跨多季的週期，還是你認為可以相對快速地建立，以增加額外的保險公司承載量？

And then maybe just an update on the LLM traffic, maybe what you've observed or learned since the last call. Any sense potentially how cannibalistic this is or kind of maybe how that traffic is shaking out?

另外也想請你更新一下 LLM 流量的狀況，包含自上次電話會議以來你們觀察到或學到的事情。你們是否能判斷這是否具有排擠效應（cannibalistic），或這部分流量目前的走勢如何？

On the insurance build-out, we're definitely talking multi-quarters, right? I mean, we're talking about standing up a system where we're routing calls to agents at both independent agents as well as captive agents. So that just takes time. We got to build that out from both a operational side as well as a BD side and demonstrate our value and kind of follow the playbook over time. So I'd expect more of a slower ramp there.

關於保險的建置，我們確實是在談跨多季，對吧？我的意思是，我們要建立一套系統，能把來電導向獨立代理人以及專屬代理人（captive agents）。這需要時間。我們必須從營運面以及商務開發（BD）面把它建起來，證明我們的價值，並隨時間推進按部就班地執行。因此我預期會是較為緩慢的爬坡。

We're going to try to do it efficiently, but that is an incremental investment. And then in terms of LLM traffic, pretty much the same story as last quarter. I mean, we're pretty dominant when it comes to LLM share in financial services or money questions based on all the third-party data we've seen.

我們會努力以高效率的方式進行，但這確實是一筆新增投資。至於 LLM 流量，基本上與上季相同。我是說，根據我們看到的所有第三方數據，在金融服務或金錢相關問題方面，我們在 LLM 份額上相當具主導地位。

So we do see people coming through. We see high conversion rates. It's just a very small piece of our overall pie right now from a revenue perspective.

所以我們確實看到有人從那裡進來，也看到很高的轉換率；只是就營收角度而言，目前它在我們整體版圖中仍是非常小的一部分。

I'm showing no further questions at this time. So I will now turn it back to management for closing remarks.

目前沒有其他問題。因此我現在把時間交回管理層作結語。

All right. Thanks, everyone, for your questions today. The quarter -- this quarter, we made meaningful progress against our strategic pillars. I'm proud of what the Nerds delivered and remain confident in where we're headed.

好的。謝謝各位今天的提問。本季——這一季，我們在策略支柱上取得了具意義的進展。我為 Nerds 團隊的成果感到自豪，也對我們前進的方向仍充滿信心。

And so our focus is clear: making NerdWallet the first place consumers turn to shop for financial products. Thank you.

因此，我們的聚焦很清楚：讓 NerdWallet 成為消費者選購金融產品時的第一站。謝謝。

Thank you for your participation in today's conference. This does conclude the program. You may now disconnect.

感謝各位參與今天的電話會議。至此本次議程結束。您現在可以中斷連線。