SLM Corp (SLM) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the Sallie Mae third-quarter 2025 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

歡迎參加 Sallie Mae 2025 年第三季財報電話會議。（操作說明）

I would now like to turn the call over to Kate De Lacy, Senior Director and Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

現在我將把電話交給高級總監兼投資者關係主管凱特·德·萊西。請繼續。

Thank you, Chloe. Good evening, and welcome to Sallie Mae's third quarter 2025 earnings call. It is my pleasure to be here today with Jon Witter, our CEO; Pete Graham, our CFO; and Melissa Bronaugh, Managing Vice President of Strategic Finance. After the prepared remarks, we will open the call for questions.

謝謝你，克洛伊。晚上好，歡迎參加 Sallie Mae 2025 年第三季財報電話會議。今天我很高興能與我們的執行長 Jon Witter、財務長 Pete Graham 以及策略財務執行副總裁 Melissa Bronaugh 一起在這裡。在發言結束後，我們將開放提問環節。

Before we begin, keep in mind our discussion will contain predictions, expectations and forward-looking statements. Actual results in the future may be materially different from those discussed here due to a variety of factors. Listeners should refer to the discussion of those factors in the company's Form 10-Q and other filings with the SEC.

在開始之前，請記住，我們的討論將包含預測、預期和前瞻性陳述。由於多種因素的影響，未來的實際結果可能與這裡討論的結果有重大差異。聽眾可以參考該公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的 10-Q 表格和其他文件中對這些因素的討論。

For Sallie Mae, these factors include, among others, results of operations, financial conditions and/or cash flows as well as any potential impact of various external factors on our business. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any predictions, expectations or forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that could occur after today, Thursday, October 23, 2025.

對 Sallie Mae 而言，這些因素包括經營績效、財務狀況和/或現金流，以及各種外部因素對我們業務的任何潛在影響。我們不承擔任何義務更新或修改任何預測、預期或前瞻性聲明，以反映2025年10月23日星期四之後可能發生的事件或情況。

Thank you. And now I'll turn the call over to Jon.

謝謝。現在我把電話交給喬恩。

Thank you, Kate and Chloe. Good evening, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss Sallie Mae's third quarter 2025 results. I hope you'll take away three key messages today. First, we delivered a successful quarter and peak season. Second, we're pleased with our year-to-date performance and believe we have real momentum that will carry us through the rest of the year. And third, we're optimistic about the long-term outlook for private student lending and the growth of Sallie Mae.

謝謝凱特和克洛伊。各位晚上好。感謝您參加我們關於 Sallie Mae 2025 年第三季業績的討論會。我希望你們今天能記住三個關鍵訊息。首先，我們成功完成了季度業績和旺季業績。其次，我們對今年迄今為止的業績感到滿意，並相信我們擁有真正的發展勢頭，這將使我們順利度過今年的剩餘時間。第三，我們對私人學生貸款的長期前景和 Sallie Mae 的發展持樂觀態度。

Let me begin with the quarter's results. GAAP diluted EPS in the third quarter was $0.63 per share. Loan originations for the third quarter were $2.9 billion, representing 6.4% growth over the year ago quarter and 6% growth year-to-date. We were pleased to see that the credit quality of originations remain strong, showing incremental improvement year-over-year and steady but meaningful improvement over the last several years.

首先，讓我來看看本季的業績。第三季GAAP稀釋後每股盈餘為0.63美元。第三季貸款發放額為 29 億美元，比去年同期成長 6.4%，比今年迄今成長 6%。我們很高興地看到，貸款發放的信貸品質依然強勁，逐年穩步提升，並且在過去幾年中取得了穩定而顯著的進步。

Our cosigner rate for the third quarter was 95% compared to 92% in the year-ago quarter and the average FICO score at approval increased to 756 from 754. These indicators reflect continued discipline in our underwriting standards.

第三季我們的共同簽署人比例為 95%，而去年同期為 92%，獲批時的平均 FICO 分數從 754 提高到 756。這些指標反映了我們在承保標準方面一貫的嚴謹態度。

We have continued to see positive momentum in our credit performance. Private education loan net charge-offs in Q3 of '25 were $78 million, representing 1.95% of average private education loans and repayment, down 13 basis points from the year ago quarter. While we are certainly living in a period of economic ambiguity, we have not observed any material change in our borrowers' ability to meet their obligations to Sallie Mae.

我們的信貸業績持續保持正面動能。2025 年第三季私人教育貸款淨沖銷額為 7,800 萬美元，佔私人教育貸款和償還總額的 1.95%，比去年同期下降 13 個基點。雖然我們目前確實處於經濟形勢不明朗的時期，但我們尚未觀察到借款人履行對 Sallie Mae 的義務的能力發生任何實質變化。

During the third quarter, we successfully completed the previously announced sale of approximately $1.9 billion in loans, generating $136 million in gains. We continued our capital return strategy in the third quarter, repurchasing 5.6 million shares at an average price of $29.45 per share. Since initiating this strategy in 2020, we have reduced our outstanding shares by 55% with an average price of $16.75.

第三季度，我們成功完成了先前宣布的約 19 億美元貸款出售，產生了 1.36 億美元的收益。第三季度，我們繼續實施資本回報策略，以每股 29.45 美元的平均價格回購了 560 萬股股票。自 2020 年實施該策略以來，我們已將流通股減少了 55%，平均價格為每股 16.75 美元。

Pete will now take you through some additional financial highlights of the quarter. Pete?

接下來，皮特將帶您了解本季的一些其他財務亮點。皮特？

Thank you, Jon. Good evening, everyone. Let's continue with a discussion of key drivers of earnings. For the third quarter of 2025, we earned $373 million of net interest income. This is up $14 million from the prior year quarter.

謝謝你，喬恩。各位晚上好。讓我們繼續討論獲利的關鍵驅動因素。2025年第三季度，我們獲得了3.73億美元的淨利息收入。這比上年同期增加了1400萬美元。

Our net interest margin was 5.18% for the quarter, 18 basis points ahead of the year ago quarter with 13 basis points behind the prior quarter given the drag from the initial liquidity that we hold to satisfy the requirements of peak season. We continue to believe that an annual NIM target in the low to 5% range -- low to mid-5% range remains appropriate over the longer term.

本季淨利差為 5.18%，比去年同期成長 18 個基點，但比上一季下降 13 個基點，這是由於我們持有初始流動性以滿足旺季需求所造成的拖累。我們仍然認為，從長遠來看，年度淨利差目標在 5% 到 5% 的低段至中段範圍內仍然是合適的。

Our provision for credit losses was $179 million in the third quarter, down from $271 million in the prior year quarter. This was largely due to $119 million of provision release resulting from the third quarter loan sale. Our total allowance as a percentage of private education loan exposure modestly improved to 5.93%, slightly below the prior quarter's 5.95% and just 9 basis points above the year ago quarter.

第三季度，我們的信貸損失準備金為 1.79 億美元，低於去年同期的 2.71 億美元。這主要是由於第三季貸款出售釋放了 1.19 億美元的撥備金。我們的撥備總額佔私人教育貸款曝險的百分比略微改善至 5.93%，略低於上一季的 5.95%，僅比去年同期高出 9 個基點。

The change from the year ago quarter results from a few factors. As we noted last quarter, the Moody's economic forecast that we use in our CECL models have deteriorated, driving a significant portion of the increase to our allowance. This model-driven impact was partially offset, however, by continued improvements in our credit performance and portfolio quality.

與去年同期相比的變化是由幾個因素造成的。正如我們上個季度所指出的，我們在 CECL 模型中使用的穆迪經濟預測已經惡化，導致我們的撥備大幅增加。然而，這種模型驅動的影響被我們信貸績效和投資組合品質的持續改善部分抵消了。

At the end of the third quarter, 4% of private education loans and repayment were 30 days or more delinquent, up from 3.6% at the end of the year ago quarter. It's important to note that this year-over-year increase is largely attributable to changes we made last year to our loan modification eligibility criteria. Specifically, since October of last year, we've restricted loan modifications to those who are at least 60 days delinquent. This change was purposeful based on our observation that many early-stage delinquent borrowers tend to self-cure without intervention.

第三季末，4%的私人教育貸款和還款逾期30天或以上，高於去年同期末的3.6%。值得注意的是，這一同比增長主要歸因於我們去年對貸款修改資格標準所做的調整。具體來說，自去年十月以來，我們將貸款修改限制在逾期至少 60 天的借款人。做出這項改變是出於我們的觀察，許多早期拖欠貸款的借款人往往無需幹預就能自行解決問題。

We believe that approximately 25 basis points of delinquencies this quarter can be attributed to borrowers who would have qualified for a modification prior to entering our reported delinquency buckets under the prior eligibility criteria. Importantly, we've seen stability in our late-stage delinquencies and roll rates. Our loan modification programs continue to deliver strong results. When we look at borrowers who have been in the programs for over a year, 80% are consistently making payments.

我們認為，本季度約有 25 個基點的違約率可歸因於那些在進入我們報告的違約率區間之前，根據先前的資格標準本應有資格獲得貸款修改的借款人。重要的是，我們的後期違約率和展期率都保持穩定。我們的貸款修改方案持續取得顯著成效。當我們查看參與該計劃一年以上的借款人時，發現其中 80% 的人一直在按時還款。

Additionally, following the previously mentioned change, monthly loan modification enrollments declined and have now stabilized around half the level that they were prior to the change. We continue to believe that our loss mitigation programs are helping our borrowers manage through periods of adversity and establish positive payment habits.

此外，在前述變更之後，每月貸款修改申請人數有所下降，目前已穩定在變化前水準的一半左右。我們仍然相信，我們的損失緩解計劃正在幫助我們的借款人度過逆境時期，並養成良好的還款習慣。

Third quarter noninterest expenses were $180 million compared to $167 million in the prior quarter and $172 million in the year ago quarter. This aligns with our full year outlook and positions us well as we head into the final months of the year.

第三季非利息支出為 1.8 億美元，而上一季為 1.67 億美元，去年同期為 1.72 億美元。這與我們全年的展望相符，也使我們在進入今年最後幾個月時處於有利地位。

And finally, our liquidity and capital positions remain strong. We ended the quarter with a liquidity ratio of 15.8%, total risk-based capital was 12.6% and common equity Tier 1 capital was 11.3%. We're encouraged by the exciting opportunities ahead as we continue to grow and evolve our business, enabling strong return of capital to shareholders moving forward.

最後，我們的流動性和資本狀況依然強勁。本季末，我們的流動比率為 15.8%，總風險資本為 12.6%，普通股一級資本為 11.3%。我們深受鼓舞，未來將迎來令人興奮的機遇，我們將持續發展壯大業務，並為股東帶來強勁的資本回報。

Now I'll turn the call back to Jon.

現在我把電話轉回給喬恩。

Thanks, Pete. I hope you share my belief that our third quarter performance reflects strong execution and positions us well to sustain momentum through the remainder of 2025. As we look ahead, we're optimistic about the impact of recent federal reforms and the opportunities they create for our industry and for Sallie Mae to better serve students and families.

謝謝你，皮特。我希望您也認同，我們第三季的業績反映了我們強有力的執行力，並為我們保持這一勢頭直至 2025 年結束奠定了良好的基礎。展望未來，我們對近期聯邦改革的影響以及這些改革為我們的行業和 Sallie Mae 更好地服務學生和家庭所創造的機會持樂觀態度。

As the leading private student lender, Sallie Mae is well positioned to support them through this transition. At the same time, we recognize that these changes create new challenges for our school partners. We are proud to be working closely with many of them to design innovative solutions that help ensure students can access and complete their desired degrees.

作為領先的私人學生貸款機構，Sallie Mae 完全有能力支持他們度過這段轉型期。同時，我們也意識到這些變化為我們的學校夥伴帶來了新的挑戰。我們很榮幸能與他們中的許多人密切合作，設計創新解決方案，幫助確保學生能夠獲得並完成他們想要的學位。

In parallel, we have been actively exploring alternative funding partnerships in the private credit space to expand our ability to serve students. We expect to announce a first-of-its-kind partnership in the near term, and we'll share more details soon after. We view this as a strategic step toward unlocking the value of our attractive customer base, setting the stage for sustainable growth of capital-light fee-based revenues. We are looking forward to sharing more at a second investor forum later this year.

同時，我們一直在積極探索私人信貸領域的其他融資合作關係，以擴大我們服務學生的能力。我們預計近期將宣布一項史無前例的合作，之後將盡快分享更多細節。我們認為這是釋放我們極具吸引力的客戶群價值的策略步驟，為資本投入較少的收費收入的可持續成長奠定了基礎。我們期待在今年稍後舉行的第二屆投資者論壇上分享更多資訊。

Let me conclude with a discussion of 2025 guidance. To kick off this partnership, we anticipate selling both a small portfolio of seasoned loans and a portion of our recent peak season originations either in the fourth quarter or early in 2026. Accordingly, we expect to designate a portion of our loans as held for sale prior to the end of the year.

最後，我想談談 2025 年的指導方針。為了啟動這項合作，我們預計將在第四季度或 2026 年初出售一小部分成熟貸款組合以及我們最近旺季發放的部分貸款。因此，我們預計在年底前將部分貸款指定為待售資產。

As a result, we now expect our GAAP earnings per common share for 2025 to be between $3.20 and $3.30. At the same time, we are reaffirming all other elements of our 2025 outlook, including originations growth, net charge-offs and noninterest expense metrics, reflecting continued confidence in our strategic trajectory.

因此，我們現在預計2025年每股普通股GAAP收益將在3.20美元至3.30美元之間。同時，我們重申2025年展望的其他所有要素，包括貸款發放成長、淨沖銷和非利息支出指標，這反映了我們對自身策略方向的持續信心。

With that, Pete, why don't we go ahead and open up the call for some questions?

那麼，皮特，我們不妨開始接受提問吧？

(Operator Instructions)

（操作說明）

Moshe Orenbuch, TD Cowen.

Moshe Orenbuch，TD Cowen。

Great. I guess maybe two thoughts and questions. The first, I guess, is, is there a way to kind of think about the performance of the current delinquency out a little further than the end of the year. I guess, I know it's not your custom to give guidance past the current year, but -- and we've looked at roll rates and we see that they've gotten somewhat better, but there has been some concern about the level of delinquency. So could you -- is there any way to kind of give us a sense as to how you expect that -- the current book to perform over the next several quarters?

偉大的。我想可能有兩點想法和問題。首先，我想問的是，有沒有辦法把目前的違約預測到年底之後更長的時間？我知道您通常不會對今年以後的情況做出指導，但是——我們已經查看了滾動率，發現情況有所好轉，但拖欠率仍然令人擔憂。那麼，您能否—有沒有辦法讓我們大致了解您對本書未來幾季表現的預期？

Yes, Moshe, it's Pete here. I think, look, we've been really pleased with the performance of the loan mod programs. We are encouraged by the stability we've seen in terms of new entrants to the programs that we've seen over the last few quarters. Given the seasonality of our business, yes, early-stage delinquencies ticked up a little bit in this quarter, but we don't view that as anything troubling in terms of longer-term trends. And we expect to continue to see stability in the late-stage delinquencies and our roll rates.

是的，莫什，我是皮特。我認為，我們對貸款調整計畫的執行情況非常滿意。在過去幾個季度裡，我們看到計畫新參與者的數量保持穩定，這令我們感到鼓舞。考慮到我們業務的季節性，是的，本季早期違約率略有上升，但就長期趨勢而言，我們認為這並沒有什麼令人擔憂的地方。我們預計後期違約率和滾動率將繼續保持穩定。

And so we're comfortable with the guidance we've given through the end of this year, and we continue to believe that, that kind of high 1s, low 2% net charge-off rate is the right way to think about us over a longer term.

因此，我們對今年年底前給予的指導意見感到滿意，我們仍然認為，1%到2%的淨沖銷率是長期看待我們的正確方式。

Got it. And obviously, your new partner in terms of this sale is obviously also, I would assume, given that some thought. Is there any way to give us any further texture around how to think about that sale and how -- what the terms would be like?

知道了。顯然，就這筆交易而言，你的新合作夥伴顯然也是經過深思熟慮的。能否進一步詳細說明這筆交易的想法以及交易條款？

Again, we're still in final -- sort of the final stretch of the deal coming together, and we'll release appropriate level of detail when we complete that, and we look forward to talking in more detail about what that means for the future as we go into the investor forum, as Jon said.

再次強調，我們仍處於最後階段——也就是交易即將完成的最後階段，我們將在完成後公佈適當的細節，正如喬恩所說，我們期待在投資者論壇上更詳細地討論這對未來意味著什麼。

Got it. Thank you.

知道了。謝謝。

Jeff Adelson, Morgan Stanley.

傑夫·阿德爾森，摩根士丹利。

Hey, good morning. Thanks for taking my question. I mean, good evening, sorry, it's been a long day for taking my question. Just wanted to circle back on the modification question. Listen, I recognize that the pace of modifications has slowed. And if we look at the 10-Q disclosure on the payment status table, the volume of modifications over the past 12 months has come down a lot. But if we do look at that table, it does seem like there's a higher percentage of 12-month mods rising on a delinquency basis. So just maybe some color there.

嘿，早安。謝謝您回答我的問題。我的意思是，晚上好，抱歉，今天太忙了，沒時間回答我的問題。我想再跟進一下修改的問題。我知道修改的速度已經放緩了。如果我們查看 10-Q 表格中關於付款狀態的披露信息，就會發現過去 12 個月的修改量已經大幅下降。但如果我們看一下那張表格，似乎有更高比例的 12 個月延期付款是由於拖欠造成的。或許能增添一些色彩。

And how are you thinking about the roll-off of those modifications as borrowers are graduating out over the next 12 months?

那麼，您如何看待在接下來的 12 個月裡，隨著借款人陸續還款，這些貸款修改措施將如何逐步取消？

Yes. Again, we're happy with the performance of people in the mods. For those that have been in for 12 months or longer, there's strong sort of payment patterns amongst that cohort. And we believe that these programs have been successful in helping people through a period of stress and to establish positive payment patterns. And so we're optimistic as we look to those sort of first graduating wave from these that will have a high degree of success, and that's something that we're keeping an eye on.

是的。再次重申，我們對版主們的表現感到滿意。對於那些入職 12 個月或更長時間的人來說，該群體中存在著某種明顯的支付模式。我們相信，這些計劃已成功幫助人們度過壓力時期，並建立了積極的支付模式。因此，我們對第一批畢業的學生抱持樂觀態度，認為他們會取得很高的成功率，這也是我們正在密切關注的事情。

And just on a partnership opportunity, any sort of early details you can give us ahead of the Investor Forum later this year, just maybe any sort of insight into the economics, length of the terms? And are you going to potentially be starting to use some of the current book? Or will that be more for the forthcoming opportunity with Grad PLUS going away? And just any sort of like high-level commentary on how that might shift economics.

關於合作機會，您能否在今年稍後的投資者論壇之前向我們提供一些早期細節，例如經濟效益、合作期限等方面的資訊？您是否打算開始使用本書中的一些內容？或者，這更多是為了應對即將取消的 Grad PLUS 專案帶來的機會？以及任何關於這可能會如何影響經濟的高層次評論。

Yes. Again, we're close to being done, but we're not done. So I can't share too much detail. We've said pretty consistently that we were looking to establish a multiyear arrangement with a strategic partner and that still holds true. I think if you consider Jon's comments around our revision of guidance, the fact that we're designating a portion of our portfolio of loans as held for sale as we go into the fourth quarter, that's an indicator that we have loans in the current book that are going to be part of it.

是的。我們快要完成了，但還沒完成。所以我不能透露太多細節。我們一直以來都表示，我們希望與策略夥伴建立多年合作關係，至今仍不變。我認為，如果你考慮到 Jon 對我們修訂業績指引的評論，以及我們在進入第四季度時將部分貸款組合指定為待售貸款這一事實，這表明我們目前的賬簿中有一些貸款將成為其中的一部分。

Okay, thank you.

好的，謝謝。

Mark DeVries, Deutsche Bank.

馬克‧德弗里斯，德意志銀行。

Yeah, thanks. I have a follow-up question on Moshe's first question about kind of the outlook for credit, given where we are with the delinquency trends. I mean I get that -- I think you indicated roughly 25 basis points of the delinquencies are due to kind of changes in eligibility for the loan mods, but that would still imply we're kind of up year-over-year on -- I think you commented on stable, not necessarily improving roll rates.

嗯，謝謝。關於 Moshe 提出的第一個問題，鑑於目前的違約趨勢，我對信貸前景有一個後續問題。我的意思是，我明白了——我認為你指出，大約 25 個基點的違約是由於貸款修改資格的變化造成的，但這仍然意味著我們同比有所上升——我認為你評論的是穩定的，而不是改善的滾動率。

So is it still right to assume that delinquencies at best or kind of I mean, charge-offs as we look forward, are going to be kind of flat, if not slightly higher, just given we're up year-over-year on delinquencies net?

那麼，鑑於我們淨違約率同比上升，我們是否可以仍然假設，展望未來，違約率（或者說核銷率）將保持平穩，甚至略有上升？

Yes, Mark, it's Jon. I'm not sure I have a lot to add over what Pete said to Moshe. But look, I think if you look at the overall delinquency trend, I think the change in program terms really accounts for the majority of the change in delinquency rate year-over-year. We obviously have a methodology for figuring that out that points to the specific cases that we know with certainty.

是的，馬克，我是喬恩。對於皮特對摩西說的話，我不太確定我還有什麼要補充的。但是，我認為，如果你觀察整體的違約趨勢，我認為計畫條款的變化才是導致違約率逐年變化的主要原因。我們顯然有一種方法可以找出答案，這種方法可以指出我們確切知道的具體案例。

By the way, there's a sort of confidence band around that, it could be even a little bit higher. But I sort of consider delinquencies to be sort of plus or minus flat within sort of normal operational variability that we're seeing in the book. And I think as Pete said, we feel pretty comfortable about the roll rates being consistent and flat and the performance of the mod.

順便說一句，這個數字周圍存在一個置信區間，實際值可能會更高一些。但我認為，在書中看到的正常營運波動範圍內，違約率大致處於正負平穩狀態。正如 Pete 所說，我們對滾動速率的一致性和平穩性以及模組的表現都感到非常滿意。

So as I mentioned, we are certainly in an ambiguous economic environment. It's hard to make predictions now 15 months out if you start to think about the end of next year. So we're not going to do that here today. But I think we continue to feel confident in sort of the long-term through-the-cycle sort of metrics that we laid out before, the 1.9% to sort of 2.1% numbers that have been commonly cited. And I think we believe that we're delivering on those commitments pretty well and are excited to continue that progress next year.

正如我之前提到的，我們目前確實處於一個充滿不確定性的經濟環境。如果現在就開始考慮明年年底的情況，那麼提早15個月做出預測就很難了。所以今天我們不打算在這裡做這件事。但我認為我們仍然對我們先前提出的長期週期性指標充滿信心，也就是人們常引用的 1.9% 到 2.1% 的數字。我認為我們相信我們很好地履行了這些承諾，並期待明年繼續取得進展。

Okay. Fair enough. And then just turning to, I think the marketing strategies that you talked about being kind of the reason that you had to kind of reduce the origination guidance for this year. Are these strategies that you've kind of revisited and potentially looking for ways to kind of reaccelerate origination growth as we look into 2026?

好的。很公平。然後，我想說的是，您剛才提到的行銷策略可能是您必須降低今年貸款發放預期的原因。您是否已經重新審視了這些策略，並可能正在尋找方法來重新加速2026年的業務成長？

Yeah. I mean, I think, Mark, a couple of thoughts. One, I think we put up over 6% origination growth for the quarter year-over-year. That's really strong and I think attractive origination growth that I think probably fares and compares well with what a lot of other consumer credit-oriented companies would do.

是的。我的意思是，馬克，我有幾點想法。第一，我認為我們本季的貸款發放量年增超過 6%。這確實非常強勁，而且我認為其貸款發放成長很有吸引力，我認為它的表現可能與其他許多以消費信貸為導向的公司相比也毫不遜色。

So one, I don't think we're making any apologies for the level of originations growth that we've seen. Two, as I think Pete shared at a conference earlier this fall, there's gives and gets every year in how we think about originations growth. We, every year, strive to be better, more efficient, more effective in our marketing. I think we've done that. You've seen that in our cost of acquisition coming down over time.

所以，第一，我認為我們無需為我們所看到的貸款發放量增長水平感到抱歉。第二，正如我認為 Pete 在今年秋天早些時候的一次會議上分享的那樣，每年我們在思考貸款發放成長方面都會有所取捨。我們每年都力求在行銷方面做得更好、更有效率、更有效。我認為我們已經做到了。你已經看到，隨著時間的推移，我們的獲客成本一直在下降。

We've also been really thoughtful about ways that we can continue to hone and refine our underwriting models to make sure that we are sort of getting the very best type of customer that we can and the ones that will really maximize our ROEs. And I think Pete shared that over the last three or four years, we've taken rough justice, $600 million to $700 million a year out of our annual originations.

我們也一直在認真思考如何繼續改進和完善我們的核保模型，以確保我們能夠獲得最好的客戶，以及那些能夠真正最大化我們股本回報率的客戶。我認為皮特也提到，在過去的三年或四年裡，我們從每年的貸款發放中損失了 6 億至 7 億美元，這簡直是天理難容。

So the growth rates that we're talking about, which I think are really attractive growth rates are happening simultaneously to us improving pretty dramatically the quality of our originations. I think that's a trade our investors really do like and should like. That's value creation. I think this year, we had a plan that we thought would get us to slightly higher originations growth in light of the headwinds of sort of those underwriting changes. I think we executed most of it. We didn't quite get all of it.

所以，我們所說的成長率，我認為是非常有吸引力的成長率，是在我們大幅提高貸款發放品質的同時實現的。我認為這是我們的投資者真正喜歡而且應該喜歡的交易。這就是價值創造。我認為今年，我們制定了一項計劃，旨在克服承保變化帶來的不利影響，實現略高的貸款發放量成長。我認為我們執行了大部分任務。我們並沒有完全理解。

But again, I think we believe we are on a trajectory, and we've built a marketing machine that will allow us to continue to sort of maintain and at times, potentially grow our already industry-leading market share. We see no reason to believe that we won't continue our successful growth next year. And we look forward to not only competing for the traditional business we have, but quite frankly, also competing very hard for the emerging PLUS opportunity as it unfolds.

但是，我認為我們正走在正確的道路上，我們已經建立了一套行銷機制，這將使我們能夠繼續保持，甚至在某些情況下，有可能擴大我們已經處於行業領先地位的市場份額。我們認為明年不會繼續保持成長勢頭。我們不僅期待在現有傳統業務領域競爭，而且坦白說，我們也期待在新興的PLUS業務領域展開激烈的競爭。

Got it. Thank you.

知道了。謝謝。

Terry Ma, Barclays.

Terry Ma，巴克萊銀行。

Hey, thank you. Just wanted to follow up on credit. If I just think simplistically, historically, there's a positive correlation between delinquencies and net charge-offs. So when you sit here today and look at the 4%, like any color you can kind of give us on, like why that wouldn't kind of imply maybe higher charge-offs for 2026?

嘿，謝謝。想跟進一下信用狀況。如果我只是簡單地從歷史角度來看，拖欠款項和淨沖銷之間存在正相關關係。所以，當你今天坐在這裡，看到 4% 這個數字時，你能不能給我們解釋一下，為什麼這不代表 2026 年的沖銷額可能會更高？

Yes. I think I covered it in my prior comments, Terry, that like we feel like the combination of the loan modification programs we put in place are going to behave as we intended them to do when we designed the programs. And what we're seeing so far with those programs is that we've got stable levels of late-stage delinquency and the roll rates are stabilized as well. So like that's our expectation going forward. Again, barring any exogenous sort of market event, we feel like we're set up for success there.

是的。特里，我想我在之前的評論中已經提到過了，我們感覺我們實施的貸款修改計劃組合將會按照我們設計這些計劃時的預期效果發揮作用。到目前為止，我們從這些項目中看到的是，後期違約率保持穩定，續貸率也趨於穩定。所以這就是我們未來的預期。再次強調，除非出現任何外部市場事件，否則我們感覺我們已經做好了成功的準備。

And we reconfirmed our guidance for this year, and we reconfirmed our longer-term read on destination net charge-off range. I'm not sure what more we can say.

我們再次確認了今年的業績指引，並再次確認了我們對目的地淨沖銷範圍的長期預期。我不知道我們還能說什麼。

Okay. Fair enough. And I guess, like in your deck, you mentioned Grad originations are up 11% year-over-year. Any color you can give us on kind of what's driving that, whether it's behavioral changes from borrowers as a result of the bill that passed earlier? Or are you just kind of gaining share? Thank you.

好的。很公平。我想，就像你在簡報中提到的那樣，畢業生貸款發放量年增了 11%。您能否透露造成這種情況的原因，例如是否是由於先前通過的法案導致借款人的行為發生了變化？還是你只是在逐步擴大市場佔有率？謝謝。

Terry, we won't have share numbers for the quarter for probably another month plus on that. We have always had a grad business. It is one that in the grand scheme of all the grad business out there was relatively small because of the Grad PLUS position from the government. There were only pockets where we felt like we could really profitably compete with the Grad PLUS program.

Terry，我們可能還要一個月甚至更久才能拿到本季的股票數量數據。我們一直都有研究生業務。從整個研究生就業市場來看，由於政府提供的「研究生PLUS」計劃，這個行業規模相對較小。我們只覺得在某些領域，我們能夠真正與 Grad PLUS 計畫展開有利可圖的競爭。

We have obviously, since PLUS reform was announced, started to pay a lot more attention to the opportunities to innovate in our graduate marketing. I think we felt like it was important to sort of continue to break out our sort of Grad performance. And so my guess is the result is probably in part the change of a little bit of customer behavior. I think we don't quite know that yet, but it wouldn't surprise me. I think it's also just a focus of us beginning to gear up and get ready for what we think will be a much larger opportunity ahead.

顯然，自從PLUS改革宣布以來，我們開始更加關注研究生行銷方面的創新機會。我認為我們覺得繼續舉辦我們的畢業演出非常重要。因此，我猜結果可能部分是因為顧客行​​為發生了一些變化。我認為我們還不能完全確定，但這不會讓我感到驚訝。我認為這也是我們開始集中精力，為我們認為即將到來的更大機會做好準備的標誌。

But we see it as an exciting opportunity for us, not only in next year's volume, which given the phase-in of the PLUS reform is going to be smaller, but really playing out here over the course of the next couple of years.

但我們認為這是一個令人興奮的機會，不僅明年銷量會因為 PLUS 改革的逐步實施而減少，而且在未來幾年內，銷量還會真正有所增長。

Got it. Thank you.

知道了。謝謝。

Don Fandetti, Wells Fargo.

唐范德蒂，富國銀行。

Hi, good evening. In terms of the recent credit and ABS market volatility, do you think that's going to impact your gain on sale margins for the Q4, Q1 production? And is the 7% this quarter sort of a good base level run rate?

您好，晚上好。鑑於近期信貸和資產支持證券 (ABS) 市場的波動，您認為這會影響您第四季和第一季的銷售利潤率嗎？本季7%的成長率算是比較好的基礎成長率嗎？

Yes. I think what I would say there is, there's different phases in the cycle. We've done over time, pretty successful loan sales over a multiyear period in kind of that sort of mid- to high single-digit range. Sometimes we've gotten above that. Sometimes we're a little below that.

是的。我認為，這個週期有不同的階段。多年來，我們的貸款銷售一直相當成功，收益率基本上保持在個位數中高水準。有時我們能超越那種境界。有時我們會略低於這個水平。

But I think it's really tied to kind of where spreads are in general at any point in time when we're executing a trade. At the margins, it can also be impacted by the implied structure that the purchaser is intending to use for their leverage takeout as well.

但我認為這實際上與我們在執行交易時任何時間點的價差總體情況密切相關。從邊際上看，它也可能受到買方打算用於槓桿收購的隱含結構的影響。

Got it. Thank you.

知道了。謝謝。

Sanjay Sakhrani, KBW.

Sanjay Sakhrani，KBW。

Thank you. Pete, I just want to make sure I understood sort of the fourth quarter impact on moving those loans to held for sale. Does that mean that you sort of recognize -- do you move provisions over? I'm just trying to think about like it has an earnings benefit, correct? It's not the actual gain on sale that you recognize.

謝謝。皮特，我只是想確認一下我是否理解了第四季度將這些貸款轉為待售狀態的影響。那是不是代表你某種程度上承認──你會把供應品轉移過去？我只是想看看它是否能帶來收益，對嗎？你所看到的並不是實際的銷售收益。

Correct. So when you -- the accounting for held for sale, it is essentially a lower cost of market. So to the extent you expect a premium, you don't really have a change in the value of the loans themselves. You can continue to carry them at their sort of par basis for lack of a better term.

正確的。所以，當你進行持有待售資產的會計處理時，它本質上是一種較低的市場成本。因此，即使你期望獲得溢價，貸款本身的價值實際上也不會改變。你可以繼續以大致相同的價格持有它們，暫且這麼說吧。

And then to the extent they're in held for sale, you don't have to put a CECL provision against them. So the impact that we've reflected in our updated guidance is the release of that provision.

而且，如果這些資產處於持有待售狀態，則無需對其提列 CECL 準備金。因此，我們在更新後的指南中體現的影響就是該條款的發布。

Got it. And is there any way to sort of dimensionalize that as far as sort of what the contribution was to the annual guide?

知道了。那麼，有沒有辦法從維度上衡量它對年度指南的貢獻呢？

Again, you need to know the exact amount of loans that have been reclassified, which we haven't disclosed. And it's roughly the CECL reserve rate that we talk about each quarter that gets released.

再次強調，您需要知道重新分類的貸款的確切金額，而我們尚未披露該金額。這大致上就是我們每季都會提到的 CECL 準備率。

Okay. You guys haven't disclosed that yet what you've reclassified?

好的。你們還沒公佈重新分類的內容嗎？

Correct.

正確的。

Okay. And then, Jon, just one follow-up on this repayment wave that's coming through in November. Obviously, lots of discussion about graduates and the challenging job market. I mean, is there any -- I know all the commentary that you have was pretty constructive in terms of what you're seeing. I mean, do you guys have any foresight into sort of how those cohorts will behave as they come into repayment? Or is that sort of a point of scrimmage type of event?

好的。喬恩，關於11月即將到來的這波還款潮，我還有一點後續問題。顯然，大家都在熱烈討論畢業生和充滿挑戰的就業市場。我的意思是，有沒有什麼——我知道你所有的評論都對你看到的情況很有建設性。我的意思是，你們有沒有預見到這些借款人在還款後會如何表現？或者說，那是一種爭球點類型的事件？

Thanks. Yeah, Sanjay, great question. Yes, Sanjay, great question. And look, I read all the same stories that I'm sure you and others read and sort of see the same facts. Let me see if I can paint a little bit of a picture here. But I would start by saying the period where students graduate and transition into their adult lives, we know is -- always has been, and I suspect always will be one of the most difficult periods in sort of their life. And that's reflected by the fact that rough justice half of all financial distress that we see, and this has been true, Sanjay, for many, many years, happens in that first year or two after they finish their higher education experience and enter repayment.

謝謝。是的，桑傑，問得好。是的，桑傑，問得好。你看，我讀過的所有報道，我相信你和其他人也都讀過，而且我看到的也都是同樣的事實。讓我試著描述一下情況。但我想先說的是，學生畢業並過渡到成年生活的這段時期，我們都知道——過去是，現在也是，而且我懷疑將來也永遠是——他們一生中最艱難的時期之一。這一點可以從以下事實中體現：我們看到的全部財務困境中，大約有一半（桑傑，多年來一直如此）發生在他們完成高等教育經歷並開始還款後的頭一兩年內。

So this is always a time where unemployment is higher. This is always a time where financial distress is a little bit higher. And by the way, that's our business. That's why we've built the programs we've built. That's why we're really expert in sort of understanding how to market to and educate our students and their cosigners about the transition to higher education and the like.

所以這段時間通常是失業率較高的時期。這段時間通常是經濟壓力較大的時期。順便說一句，那是我們的業務。這就是我們開發這些程式的原因。正因如此，我們才非常擅長了解如何向我們的學生及其擔保人進行市場推廣和教育，幫助他們了解向高等教育過渡等相關事宜。

It's a known period of sort of performance importance for us. So that's sort of thought number one.

這是一個對我們來說非常重要的時期。這是第一個想法。

Thought number two is if you go back and you look at what's been going on with early graduate unemployment rates. So think about students who are sort of 20 to 24 years old. And if you take out the COVID year or two, which was obviously unusual, what we have seen for the last three or so years is early kind of graduate unemployment rates are slightly elevated from where they were pre-COVID.

第二個想法是，如果你回顧一下，看看應屆畢業生失業率的現況。所以想想那些年齡在 20 到 24 歲之間的學生。如果排除新冠疫情期間那一兩年的特殊情況，那麼在過去三年左右的時間裡，我們看到的是，應屆畢業生的早期失業率比新冠疫情前的水平略高。

What's really interesting is despite all the stories of sort of a gloom and doom for the current graduating class, the current unemployment rate for early-stage graduates is only up about 10 basis points over last year. And that's even smaller on a percentage basis than what you might imagine. And I'd encourage you to go back and look at the data for yourself.

真正有趣的是，儘管有各種關於當前應屆畢業生前景黯淡的報道，但目前應屆畢業生的失業率僅比去年上升了約 10 個基點。以百分比計算，這甚至比你想像的還要小。我建議您回去親自查看數據。

And so while I said earlier in my prepared remarks that we are certainly living in, I think my term was ambiguous economic times, I think I was also pretty clear in saying we just haven't seen that yet in our operating results. Now as the leader of a credit-oriented company, I'm not ever going to tempt fate by sort of trying to predict what the future economic environment is going to be like. But I think we would say the unemployment story is always a challenge.

因此，雖然我之前在準備好的發言稿中說過，我們確實生活在一個（我認為我用的詞是）含義模糊的經濟時期，但我認為我也很清楚地表示，我們還沒有在經營業績中看到這一點。身為信貸型公司的領導者，我絕對不會冒險去預測未來的經濟環境會是什麼樣子。但我認為，失業問題始終是個挑戰。

We are really well prepared and suited to manage it. The impacts year-over-year, I think, are not what maybe is the popular perception out there and I think sort of the data tells a pretty clear story. And we haven't seen it in our performance, but we're not taking that for granted. We are continuing to work really constructively with our borrowers.

我們已做好充分準備，完全有能力應對此事。我認為，逐年產生的影響可能與外界普遍的看法有所不同，我認為數據也清楚地說明了這一點。雖然我們目前還沒有在比賽中看到這一點，但我們不會掉以輕心。我們正與借款人繼續保持非常積極的合作。

We're continuing to up our outreach program for soon-to-be graduates to really help ease their transition into repayment because we do view this as a really important performance moment for us and really more importantly, a really important moment for our students and their families and helping them be successful in this transition.

我們正在繼續加強對即將畢業的學生的宣傳推廣，以真正幫助他們順利過渡到還款階段，因為我們認為這對我們來說是一個非常重要的績效時刻，更重要的是，對我們的學生及其家庭來說也是一個非常重要的時刻，我們要幫助他們成功完成這一過渡。

Okay, great, thank you so much.

好的，太好了，非常感謝。

Rick Shane, JP Morgan.

Rick Shane，摩根大通。

Hey guys, thanks for taking my question this afternoon. A couple of things. Look, the decision to sell loans in the fourth quarter, doing some rough math, it looks a little bit different from what you guys outlined strategically two years ago in terms of growing the book a little bit faster and reducing or at least keeping flat the actual dollar volume of loans sold. So I'm curious sort of what shifted in your thinking there.

各位，感謝你們今天下午回答我的問題。有幾件事。你看，第四季度出售貸款的決定，粗略計算一下，與你們兩年前製定的戰略計劃略有不同，當時的目標是加快貸款規模的增長，並減少或至少保持實際貸款出售金額不變。所以我很好奇，你的想法在那方面發生了怎樣的轉變。

And then I want to make sure I understand the answer to Sanjay's question because it sounds like there are basically two scenarios here. One scenario where loans are held for sale, you release the reserves, but you don't recognize the gain on sale. Second scenario is you complete the sale and you get both the gain on sale and the reserve release.

然後我想確認一下我是否理解了桑傑的問題的答案，因為聽起來這裡基本上有兩種情況。有一種情況是，貸款被持有待售，你釋放儲備金，但你不確認出售收益。第二種情況是，你完成了交易，既獲得了銷售收益，又獲得了儲備金釋放。

Given where gain on sale margins are, it would seem that the variance between those two scenarios is significantly more greater than the variance between the high end and low end of your guidance. And so I'm trying to make sure I understand this fully.

鑑於銷售利潤率的現狀，這兩種情況之間的差異似乎比您給出的業績指引上限和下限之間的差異要大得多。所以我正在努力確保自己完全理解這一點。

Yes. Rick, let me take those in reverse order, and I'll invite Pete at the end to jump in if I miss anything. We have not assumed anything in our guidance about a gain on sale. I think we said very clearly that the actual loan sale would happen either in the fourth quarter or in the first quarter. We don't know that timing yet.

是的。瑞克，讓我倒著回答這些問題，如果我漏掉了什麼，最後我會請皮特來補充。我們的指導方針中並沒有對出售收益做出任何假設。我認為我們已經非常明確地表示，實際的貸款出售將在第四季或第一季進行。我們目前還不知道具體時間。

We felt like it was inappropriate for us to incorporate the gain into our outlook. So there is nothing about the gain in our guidance.

我們覺得將這項收益納入我們的預期是不合適的。因此，我們的指導意見中並沒有提及收益方面的內容。

I think what we said was we expect to sort of conclude and to hopefully sign this deal here in the near term. When we do, we will identify the loans that will be a part of that sort of initial deal. And as I think is appropriate and good accounting, we will, therefore, start to account for those loans differently at that time regardless of whether or not the actual closing date for that sale has a '25 handle on it or a '26 handle on it. So hopefully, that sort of answers your question. And again, we've tried to be as clear as we can be about that so that you can model it appropriately.

我認為我們當時的意思是，我們希望能在近期內完成並簽署這項協議。屆時，我們將確定哪些貸款將納入此類初步交易中。因此，我認為，按照適當且良好的會計原則，我們將開始對這些貸款進行不同的會計處理，無論該筆交易的實際成交日期是「25」還是「26」。希望這能解答你的疑問。我們再次強調，我們已經盡力把這一點解釋清楚，以便你們能夠正確地進行建模。

I think in terms of your question -- I'm sorry?

關於你的問題——抱歉？

I was going to say that's helpful. Basically, the reserve release is contemplated in that guidance, but you're not embedding a gain on sale. If the deal closes in the fourth quarter, it's probably upside to the number?

我本來想說這很有幫助。基本上，該指導意見中考慮到了儲備釋放，但你並沒有在出售時計入收益。如果交易在第四季度完成，那麼這個數字可能會上漲？

Correct. In terms of your question of sort of what strategically has changed, I think the answer in short form is nothing, but I think it's a little more complicated than that. We are still very, very committed to the strategy that we -- the general strategy that we laid out at the Investor Forum 2 years ago, December, which is the idea of modest balance sheet growth in the bank, using loan sales to moderate that growth, still have aggressive return of capital and so forth.

正確的。至於你問的策略上發生了哪些變化，我認為簡而言之，答案是沒有任何變化，但我認為實際情況要複雜一些。我們仍然非常非常致力於我們兩年前在投資者論壇上提出的整體策略，即銀行資產負債表保持適度增長，透過出售貸款來減緩成長速度，同時積極實現資本回報等等。

What I think has changed since then is really two things: one, PLUS reform, which if you look at it when fully implemented, has the opportunity to increase our annual originations meaningfully, and I think we've given all those numbers on past calls. The other is both the growth in sort of size and sophistication of private credit and sort of our ability to think about creating a new sort of third funding leg of the stool, if you will, and sort of a real business around that.

我認為自那時以來真正發生變化的是兩件事：一是改革，如果你仔細觀察，就會發現全面實施改革後，我們有機會顯著增加年度貸款發放量，而且我認為我們在過去的電話會議中已經給出了所有這些數字。另一方面，私人信貸的規模和複雜性都在增長，我們有能力思考如何創造一種新的第三條融資支柱，並圍繞它建立一個真正的業務。

And so our view is at one end of the spectrum, you've got growing the bank balance sheet, and that comes with really stable, high-quality earnings, but it also has a fairly high and heavy capital requirement to it. At the other end of the spectrum, you've got our traditional loan sale program, which we still really like which is attractive earnings economics but -- and very attractive sort of capital characteristics, but a little bit more volatility in the earnings. I think you heard Pete talk about that a minute ago.

因此，我們的觀點是，一方面，銀行資產負債表不斷增長，這帶來了非常穩定、高品質的收益，但另一方面，它也需要相當高且繁重的資本投入。另一方面，我們也有傳統的貸款出售計劃，我們仍然非常喜歡它，因為它的獲利經濟效益很有吸引力，而且資本特性也很有吸引力，但獲利波動性稍大一些。我想你剛才應該聽到皮特談到這件事了。

I think what we believe we have the opportunity to create is something that's a little bit in the middle that has the potential of having sort of more stable long-term earnings. I think we've talked about this over time, the kinds of things that would be easier to sort of model and manage, think about it almost in a sort of asset under management kind of construct.

我認為我們有機會創造出介於兩者之間的產品，它有可能帶來更穩定的長期效益。我認為我們已經討論過這個問題了，哪些事情更容易建模和管理，可以把它想像成一種資產管理結構。

At the very same time, really attractive sort of capital characteristics that go along with that. And Rick, you've known us long enough to know that we really care about capital efficiency and capital return as sort of our North Star.

同時，也伴隨著極具吸引力的資本特性。瑞克，你認識我們這麼久了，應該知道我們非常重視資本效率和資本回報，這就像我們的北極星一樣指引著我們。

And so I think what you're hearing us talk about and you've heard us talk about for the last 3 or 4 quarters, is we're excited about building sort of that third leg to our stool. And I think this is the right time for us to do it as we're sitting here on the eve of PLUS reform beginning. Yes, that probably will cause us to think a little bit differently about balance sheet growth levels here over the next several quarters as we get that up and going. But make no mistake, nothing has changed in our strategy, except we have an exciting third opportunity, which should only make it better.

所以我覺得你們聽到我們談論的，以及過去三、四個季度以來你們一直聽到我們談論的，就是我們很高興能夠為我們的凳子打造第三條腿。我認為現在正是我們進行這項工作的最佳時機，因為我們即將迎來PLUS改革。是的，隨著業務的逐步開展，未來幾季我們對資產負債表成長水準的看法可能會有所不同。但請不要誤會，我們的策略沒有任何改變，只是我們有了令人興奮的第三個機會，這只會讓情況變得更好。

Got it. Okay. I suspect we'll see a slide on this in a few months.

知道了。好的。我估計幾個月後這方面會出現下滑。

I would hope so.

我希望如此。

Terrific. Thank you, guys.

了不起。謝謝大家。

Giuliano Bologna, Compass Point.

Giuliano Bologna，指南針點。

Well, thanks for the question. I appreciate a lot of the commentary around the new program. Maybe touching on the -- on that program and a little bit of the accounting around that. I'm curious when you talk about the loans that are being moved to held for sale, is that just for the initial sale that you're planning? Or is there -- or will you continue to roll loans into held for sale as you kind of keep executing to the program? Or will those go up more similarly to the current loan sales?

謝謝你的提問。我很欣賞大家對這個新節目的許多評論。或許可以稍微談談那個項目以及相關的會計問題。我很好奇，您提到的那些被轉移到待售狀態的貸款，是否僅僅是為了您計劃的首次出售？或者，你們會繼續將貸款轉為持有待售資產，同時繼續執行該計劃？或者，這些成長趨勢會更接近目前的貸款銷售額嗎？

Yeah. So the idea and the intent is to create a multiyear partnership arrangement. The specific loans that we've identified are sort of the start of that relationship. And so over time, we would have ideally some portion of our new originations that would go into this new partnership.

是的。因此，我們的想法和目的是建立一個多年期的合作關係。我們所確定的這些具體貸款，可以說是這種關係的開端。因此，隨著時間的推移，我們理想情況下會將部分新業務投入這項新的合作關係。

That's helpful. So we should see kind of an ongoing flow of loans that just go directly into held for sale at lower cost of market going forward. And then when I think about the -- I realize that there are limitations in terms of how much you can say, but in order to kind of get within the guidance range, it seems like it's -- you need to have a number that's well into the $1 billion, even close to $2 billion that would have to move to held for sale in terms of the reserve releases. Is that wildly off base? Or am I thinking about the right ZIP code?

那很有幫助。因此，我們應該會看到持續不斷的貸款直接流入持有待售的市場，以較低的市場成本出售。然後當我思考這個問題時——我意識到在能說的內容方面存在局限性，但為了大致達到指導範圍，似乎——你需要將10億美元甚至接近20億美元的數字轉移到待售儲備金釋放階段。這種說法完全錯誤嗎？或是我記錯郵遞區號了嗎？

I mean, again, the simple math would be our reserve rate times a notional number. So that's probably about all I'm comfortable giving you on the call.

我的意思是，簡單的數學計算就是我們的儲備率乘以一個名目數字。所以，在這通電話中，我大概只能透露這麼多了。

That's helpful. And then maybe just one quick one. I realize that the prior questions come up a few times. I mean there's obviously been a bit of a structural change in the way that you're approaching the forbearance modifications and how to deal with delinquencies. And we had all the commentary in terms of what you expect when it comes to the ultimate improvements.

那很有幫助。然後也許就快速地來一個。我知道之前的問題已經出現過幾次了。我的意思是，很明顯，你們在處理寬限期調整和違約處理方式上發生了一些結構性變化。我們對最終改進方面的所有期望都進行了評論。

I'm curious when you think about the overall kind of accounting impact, is the kind of lower usage of forbearance and higher usage of modifications post-COVID or in the current time frame and going forward, something that will have a benefit when it comes to more -- less interest rate reversals and that might move around the actual delinquency rate and benefit charge-offs over time?

我很好奇，從整體會計影響的角度來看，新冠疫情後或當前時期以及未來，延期還款使用率降低、貸款修改使用率升高，是否會對利率逆轉產生更多影響，從而可能改變實際拖欠率，並隨著時間的推移減少核銷？

Or is there a potential that charge-offs might be higher, but you have less interest rate reversals because you're getting more loans to reperform and still benefiting on a net basis?

或者，是否存在這樣的可能性：壞帳可能更高，但由於有更多貸款需要重新履行，因此利率逆轉較少，最終仍然淨受益？

Yes. I think if you take a few steps back and you look broadly at our use of forbearance as a tool to manage the stress in the early-stage repayment portion of the book, the overall levels of people enrolled in that forbearance prior to our change in practice compared to the overall level of people that are now in the mod programs is relatively consistent. It's not exactly like-for-like, but it's -- on order of magnitude, it's pretty consistent.

是的。我認為，如果你退後幾步，從更宏觀的角度來看待我們使用寬限期作為管理早期還款階段壓力的工具，那麼在我們改變做法之前參加寬限期的人數與現在參加調整計劃的人數相比，總體上是相對一致的。雖然不完全一樣，但從數量級來看，兩者相當一致。

But what we substituted was sort of short-term and judgmental usage of forbearance to manage stress and forbearance, meaning no payments are required for a more programmatic tool that tries to adjust for where the borrower is in terms of their ability to make payments on the loan. And so we feel like these new programs that we have put in place are fit for purpose, so to speak. We believe that the metrics that we're seeing in terms of performance of the borrowers in those programs are promising and give us comfort that they're designed appropriately. And we believe that as these borrowers start to graduate out of those programs and step back into their contractual terms, we expect to see a high degree of success in doing that.

但我們用一種短期且有判斷力的寬限期來取代它，以應對壓力和寬限期，這意味著不需要付款，而是一個更具程序性的工具，試圖根據借款人償還貸款的能力進行調整。因此，我們覺得我們實施的這些新計劃可以說是恰逢其時。我們認為，從這些項目中藉款人的表現指標來看，情況令人鼓舞，也讓我們確信這些項目的設計是恰當的。我們相信，隨著這些借款人陸續從這些計劃中畢業並重新履行合約條款，我們預計他們將取得很高的成功率。

Very helpful. Appreciate the time and answers to all my questions. I'll jump back in the queue.

很有幫助。感謝您抽空解答我的所有問題。我重新排隊。

John Arfstrom, RBC Capital.

John Arfstrom，RBC Capital。

Thanks, good afternoon, everyone. How are you thinking about buyback appetite at this point and the authorization as well?

謝謝大家，下午好。您目前如何看待回購意願以及授權問題？

John, it's Jon. I think the way that I would say that is, first of all, we are delighted with how our buyback program has performed through the course of this year. If you look at the numbers we just announced, we were obviously very active in the marketplace over the last couple of months during this period of dislocation. And I think bought back stock on attractive terms and at prices that I think when we look back in a month or two or a quarter or two, we're going to feel absolutely great about.

約翰，我是喬恩。我認為，首先，我們對今年以來的股票回購計畫的執行感到非常滿意。從我們剛剛公佈的數據可以看出，在過去幾個月市場動盪時期，我們顯然在市場上非常活躍。我認為，以優惠的條件和價格回購股票，讓我們在一個月、兩個月或一個季度後回顧時，感到非常滿意。

We've obviously talked a lot about the partnership on this deal. We've talked a lot about sort of the various gives and takes to sort of our balance sheet and business model over the course of the next quarter or 2. I think our view is we will sit back as we get this partnership across the goal line. We will look at the exact timing of that. We will determine, therefore, what's our appetite to do sort of additional share buybacks, how much of that we're going to do. And we'll set up our plan to sort of execute that over the course of this and coming quarters.

我們顯然已經就這項交易的合作進行了多次討論。我們已經多次討論在接下來的一個或兩個季度裡，我們的資產負債表和商業模式可能會有哪些變化。我認為我們的看法是，在確保此次合作順利完成之前，我們將保持觀望態度。我們會研究一下具體時間。因此，我們將決定我們是否有意願進行額外的股票回購，以及我們將進行多少回購。我們將製定計劃，在本季度和接下來的幾個季度內逐步執行該計劃。

So I can't comment today any more specifically on what it's going to be. I think we have to get through a couple of these sort of moving pieces. But I think you should expect, as has been the case for the last 5 years, we remain really committed to buying back our stock aggressively. It's something that we feel is an important thing that drives shareholder value. And we'll continue to do so at the time and in the quantity that we deem to be correct.

所以今天我無法就具體情況發表更多評論。我認為我們必須先解決其中幾個這類棘手的問題。但我認為，正如過去 5 年的情況一樣，你們應該會期待我們繼續積極回購股票。我們認為這是推動股東價值成長的重要因素。我們將繼續在我們認為合適的時間和數量上這樣做。

Okay. Fair enough. And then just an optics question, the 4% delinquency rate. Is that a level that we should expect to continue to trend up over time? Or is it not clear? Or is that not the right way to really look at it?

好的。很公平。還有一個關於觀感的問題，那就是 4% 的違約率。這個水平是否會隨著時間的推移而持續上升？還是說不清楚？或者，這其實不是看待這個問題的正確方式？

Look, I think that we're -- this quarter, in particular, is a seasonal sort of peak with the way that the repayment waves come through. And so I would expect this to be kind of a high point in terms of delinquencies in any given year. In terms of absolute levels, again, we're not as concerned about what the absolute level is. What we're concerned about is what are the late-stage delinquency levels, what are the roll rates and how does that implicate in terms of net charge-offs. And we feel really good about the programs that we've designed and how they're performing.

我認為，特別是本季度，由於還款潮的到來，正處於季節性高峰期。因此，我預計這將是每年違約率的最高點。至於絕對水平，我們並不太在意絕對水平是多少。我們關心的是後期違約水準如何，滾動率如何，以及這會對淨沖銷產生什麼影響。我們對所設計的方案及其執行感到非常滿意。

Okay. And then if I can ask one more, Jon, for you. Just very big picture. The noise is kind of deafening on consumer health and students entering the job market and delinquencies. Do you feel like we're all -- it's been a wild quarter in your stock.

好的。喬恩，我還能再問你一個問題嗎？只是一個非常宏觀的視角。關於消費者健康、學生進入就業市場以及青少年犯罪等議題，各種聲音震耳欲聾。你是否覺得我們所有人——你的股票這一個季度波動很大？

Do you feel like we're all too pessimistic on the credit outlook? Are we overreacting to it? Or do you have any thoughts on that, just bigger picture?

你是否覺得我們對信貸前景太過悲觀了？我們是不是反應過度了？或者你對此有什麼看法，就算只是從更宏觀的角度來看？

Yes, John, I'm not sure I have a lot to add over the answer I gave earlier. I think we have seen a relatively de minimis change year-over-year in the unemployment rate of early college grads or young college grads, those kind of 20 to 24. I think I said in my prepared remarks that we have not yet seen this ambiguous economic environment translate into anything that we sense as an inability for customers to not meet their financial obligations and sort of commitments to Sallie Mae.

是的，約翰，我不確定我還有什麼要補充的，我之前的回答已經很清楚了。我認為，我們看到，20 到 24 歲左右的大學應屆畢業生或年輕大學畢業生的失業率同比變化相對較小。我想我在事先準備好的演講稿中說過，我們還沒有看到這種不確定的經濟環境轉化為任何我們感覺到的客戶無法履行其財務義務和對 Sallie Mae 的承諾的情況。

It's a little bit hard for me to say whether it's overblown or not. I'll just say we have not seen -- we have not seen the results of some of the stories that have been put out there. And it's obviously something that we take very seriously, and we'll continue to watch for. But the time of college graduation is always associated with higher unemployment and a little bit more financial distress. And I'm not sure that we're seeing anything right now that's particularly out of the ordinary from what we would expect to see.

我很難說這件事是否被誇大了。我只想說，我們還沒看到──我們還沒看到一些已經流傳出去的報道的結果。我們顯然非常重視此事，並將繼續密切關注。但大學畢業時，失業率總是較高，經濟壓力也會更大一些。我不確定我們現在看到的現像是否有什麼特別不尋常之處，與我們的預期並無二致。

Okay, thank you very much.

好的，非常感謝。

Caroline Latta with Bank of America.

卡洛琳·拉塔，美國銀行。

I just wanted to ask, how are you guys thinking about the opportunity from the PLUS program and other federal government policy changes?

我想問一下，你們如何看待PLUS計畫和其他聯邦政府政策改變帶來的機會？

Yes, Caroline, I probably won't do it justice here today. I think we see it as an important opportunity for the private student lending market to step in and help support families and students through sort of this time of transition. We gave some numbers on the last call of what we thought that could be worth in terms of annual origination changes to us when fully implemented. And I think we were thinking about that, if memory serves in the sort of $4 billion to $5 billion range. That will not all be sort of recognized on year one.

是的，卡羅琳，我今天可能無法完美地將它呈現出來。我認為這是一個重要的機會，讓私人學生貸款市場介入，幫助家庭和學生度過這段過渡時期。在上一次電話會議上，我們給了一些數字，說明如果全面實施，這些數字可能會為我們帶來多少年度業務成長變化。如果我沒記錯的話，我們當時考慮的金額大概在 40 億到 50 億美元之間。這些問題不會在第一年就全部解決。

The PLUS reform phases in sort of each year. So if you're enrolled in a program and you've taken a loan before, I think it's July 1 of next year, you're grandfathered in under the old program. So that means it's really next year's undergraduate freshmen and graduate school first years that are sort of under the new program. So you have to sort of build it up over time based on the average length expectancy of sort of each of those programs. But if you go back and you look at sort of the details we provided on the last call, I think you'll get a pretty good sense of that.

PLUS改革每年都會分階段進行。所以，如果你參加了一個項目並且以前貸過款，我認為從明年7月1日起，你就可以根據舊項目繼續享受優惠。所以這意味著，真正適用新計畫的是明年的本科新生和研究生一年級新生。所以你必須根據每個節目的平均預期時長，隨著時間的推移慢慢累積起來。但如果你回顧我們上次通話中提供的細節，我想你就會對此有相當清晰的了解。

Awesome, thank you. And then maybe just a follow-up. Are you seeing any differences in how graduate loans are performing versus undergraduate loans in terms of like entry into delinquency and roll rates?

太棒了，謝謝。然後或許只需要後續跟進。您是否發現研究生貸款與本科生貸款在違約率和展期率等方面有任何差異？

Yes. We have a number of different grad programs. It is an apples-to-oranges comparison. All the different programs perform differently. But all of them are sort of governed under the same kind of return and lifetime loss thresholds and standards that we hold.

是的。我們有多種不同的研究生課程。這是風馬牛不相及的比較。不同的程式運作方式各不相同。但它們都或多或少受到我們所堅持的相同回報和終身損失閾值和標準的約束。

So while the timing and the patterns might be a little bit different, the underlying sort of decision and governance matrix and framework is the same. So yes, they're different on the surface, but we like those loans every bit as much as we like our other loans.

因此，雖然時間和模式可能略有不同，但背後的決策和治理矩陣及框架是相同的。所以，是的，它們表面上看起來有所不同，但我們對這些貸款的喜愛絲毫不亞於我們對其他貸款的喜愛程度。

Okay, thanks, that was really helpful.

好的，謝謝，這真的很有幫助。

Thank you.

謝謝。

This concludes the Q&A portion of today's call. I would now like to turn the floor over to Mr. Jon Witter for closing remarks.

今天的電話會議問答環節到此結束。現在我謹將發言權交給喬恩‧威特先生，請他作總結發言。

Chloe, thank you, and thank you to everyone who joined today. We appreciate your ongoing interest in Sallie Mae. We look forward to speaking with all of you at the upcoming Investor Forum, which we will schedule here in the weeks ahead, but will happen before the end of the year and obviously look forward to continuing the conversation as well next quarter.

Chloe，謝謝你，也謝謝今天到場的每一位。感謝您一直以來對 Sallie Mae 的關注。我們期待在即將舉行的投資者論壇上與各位交流，論壇的具體安排將在未來幾週內公佈，但會在年底前舉行。當然，我們也期待在下個季度繼續與各位進行對話。

With that, Kate, we'll turn it over to you for some closing business.

凱特，接下來就交給你來處理一些收尾工作了。

Thanks, Jon. Thank you all for your time and questions today. A replay of this call and the presentation will be available on the investors page at salliemae.com. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me directly. This concludes today's call.

謝謝你，喬恩。感謝各位今天抽出時間並提出問題。本次電話會議及簡報的錄音回放將在salliemae.com網站的投資者關係頁面上提供。如有任何疑問，歡迎直接與我聯絡。今天的電話會議到此結束。

This concludes today's Sallie Mae Third Quarter 2025 Earnings Conference Call and Webcast. Please disconnect your line at this time, and have a wonderful evening.

今天的 Sallie Mae 2025 年第三季財報電話會議和網路直播到此結束。請您現在斷開電話，祝您晚安。