SLM Corp (SLM) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the Sallie Mae first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

歡迎參加 Sallie Mae 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。(接線員指示)

I would like now to turn the call over to Melissa Bronaugh, Managing Vice President, Strategic Finance. Please go ahead.

現在我想把電話交給 Melissa Bronaugh，策略財務部董事總經理。請開始。

Thank you, Erica. Good evening and welcome to Sallie Mae's first-quarter 2026 earnings call. It is my pleasure to be here today with Jon Witter, our CEO; and Pete Graham, our CFO. After the prepared remarks, we will open the call for questions.

謝謝你，Erica。各位晚安，歡迎參加 Sallie Mae 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。我很高興今天能與我們的執行長 Jon Witter，以及財務長 Pete Graham 一同出席。在預先準備的發言之後，我們將開放提問。

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.

在開始之前，請記得，我們的討論將包含預測、預期以及前瞻性陳述。由於多種因素，未來實際結果可能與此處討論內容有重大差異。

Listeners should refer to the discussion of those factors in the company's Form 10-Q and other filings with the SEC. For Sallie Mae, these factors include, among others, results of operations; financial conditions and/or cash flows; as well as any potential impacts 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 occur after today, Thursday, April 23, 2026.

聽眾應參閱公司 10-Q 表格及其他向美國證券交易委員會（SEC）提交文件中對相關因素的討論。就 Sallie Mae 而言，這些因素包括但不限於營運結果、財務狀況及／或現金流量；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訂任何預測、預期或前瞻性陳述，以反映在今天（2026 年 4 月 23 日，星期四）之後發生的事件或情況。

Thank you. Now, I'll turn the call over to Jon.

謝謝。現在，我把電話交給 Jon。

Thank you, Melissa and Erica. Good evening, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss Sallie Mae's first-quarter 2026 results. Our performance in the quarter was strong, as we continue to reap the benefits of the strategy we have been pursuing for the last several years.

謝謝你，Melissa 和 Erica。各位晚安。感謝各位加入我們，一同討論 Sallie Mae 2026 年第一季業績。本季表現強勁，因為我們持續收穫過去數年所推動策略的成果。

Diluted EPS in the first quarter was $1.54 per share, as compared to $1.40 in the year-ago quarter. Loan originations were $2.9 billion, up 5% from the prior-year quarter. These results were driven by strength in our loan disbursement funnel. Importantly, this performance precedes the expected multi-year growth in both undergrad and graduate lending tied to federal reforms, which we believe could increase our originations by up to 70% over the next several years.

第一季稀釋後每股盈餘（EPS）為每股 1.54 美元，相較去年同期為 1.40 美元。貸款發放額為 29 億美元，較去年同期成長 5%。這些結果主要受惠於我們貸款撥付漏斗的強勁表現。重要的是，這項表現發生在預期的多年期成長之前；該成長將來自與聯邦改革相關的大學部與研究所放款成長，我們相信未來數年可使我們的放款發放額最多提高 70%。

We have been actively preparing for this opportunity, driving improvements across our full delivery system, from products and features to enhanced client acquisition strategies and improved servicing and fulfillment capabilities. We have already rolled out several of these enhancements, including our new medical and dental school offering, with more to come. Our goal is to serve as many students, families, and university partners as possible, as the higher education sector navigates this time of change.

我們一直積極為此機會做準備，推動整體交付體系的改善，涵蓋產品與功能、強化客戶獲取策略，以及提升服務與履約能力。我們已推出其中數項強化措施，包括全新的醫學與牙醫學院產品方案，後續還會有更多推出。在高等教育產業面對這段變革期之際，我們的目標是服務盡可能多的學生、家庭與大學合作夥伴。

Net charge-offs and delinquencies were consistent with or slightly better than our expectations. Net charge-offs were $89 million, driven by continued underwriting discipline and the ongoing optimization of our loss mitigation, collections, and recovery strategies.

淨沖銷與逾期情況符合或略優於我們的預期。淨沖銷為 8,900 萬美元，主要受惠於持續的承作（核貸）紀律，以及我們在損失緩解、催收與回收策略上的持續優化。

In Q1 of 2025, the granting of disaster-related forbearance tied to the California wildfires and the North Carolina floods temporarily suppressed both net charge-offs and delinquencies, creating tougher year-over-year comparisons.

在 2025 年第一季，因加州野火與北卡羅來納州洪災而提供的災害相關暫緩還款，短期內壓低了淨沖銷與逾期，導致年對年比較更具挑戰。

Shifting gears, you will remember, customers started exiting our new loan modification program at the end of 2025. I'm happy to report that their performance has been slightly better than what we assumed in our loss outlook, although we will need to see several more months of data to develop full confidence in these trends.

換個話題，大家還記得，客戶在 2025 年底開始退出我們新的貸款修改方案。我很高興報告，他們的表現略優於我們在損失展望中的假設，儘管我們仍需要再觀察幾個月的數據，才能對這些趨勢建立充分信心。

These results support our belief that we have built a business and are executing a strategy that is capable of performing in almost any environment. We've sharpened our customer acquisition strategies to extend our market-leading position. We've enhanced our underwriting practices and strengthened our credit and collection capabilities to better support borrowers during times of financial distress.

這些結果支持我們的看法：我們已建立一個業務並正在執行一項策略，幾乎能在任何環境下都具備良好表現能力。我們已精進客戶獲取策略，以延伸我們的市場領先地位。我們也強化了承作（核貸）作法，並提升信用與催收能力，以在借款人面臨財務壓力時提供更好的支持。

We have built an efficient cost structure with diversified efficient funding sources that continues to support strong net interest margins. We have developed a strong capital allocation framework by adding strategic partnerships to our existing portfolio of loan sale capabilities, giving us greater ability to grow recurring earnings and returning capital.

我們建立了高效率的成本結構，並擁有多元且具效率的資金來源，持續支撐強勁的淨利差。我們透過在既有貸款出售能力組合中加入策略合作夥伴關係，建立了強健的資本配置框架，使我們更有能力成長經常性獲利並回饋資本。

Our belief in our strategy, coupled with a desire to act nimbly and decisively when market opportunities arise, led us to accelerate our already robust capital return program. We executed a $2 billion seasoned loan portfolio sale during the quarter, coupled with a planned 10b5-1 share repurchase plan and, also, launched a $200 million ASR, all to take advantage of what we believe to be the disconnect between the premium from our whole loan sales and our equity valuation.

我們對策略的信心，加上希望在市場機會出現時能靈活且果斷行動，促使我們加速原本已相當強勁的資本回饋計畫。本季我們完成 20 億美元的成熟貸款投資組合出售，並搭配規劃中的 10b5-1 股票回購計畫，同時啟動 2 億美元的加速股票回購（ASR），以把握我們認為整筆貸款出售溢價與股權估值之間的落差。

Pete will now take you through some additional details. Pete?

接下來 Pete 將帶各位了解更多細節。Pete？

Thank you, Jon. Good evening, everyone.

謝謝你，Jon。各位晚安。

During the first quarter, we executed $3.3 billion in loan sales, generating $146 million in gains at attractive economics. This included $1.3 billion of planned new origination sales through our strategic partnerships business, as well as a $2 billion seasoned loan portfolio sale executed at gains in the mid- to high-single-digit range. As we have done in the past, when our equity valuation became disconnected from the market value of our loans, we deliberately leaned into our capital flexibility to advance shareholder value.

第一季期間，我們執行了 33 億美元的貸款出售，以具吸引力的經濟條件實現 1.46 億美元的處分利益。其中包括透過我們策略合作夥伴業務，按計畫出售 13 億美元的新發放貸款，以及一筆 20 億美元的成熟貸款投資組合出售，處分利益約落在中至高個位數百分比區間。如同過去所做的，當我們的股權估值與貸款的市場價值出現脫節時，我們會有意識地運用資本彈性來提升股東價值。

Following the loan sale, we entered into a $200 million accelerated share repurchase program. Year to date, we have repurchased approximately 12 million shares, 6% of the outstanding shares at the end of 2025, at an average price of $21.50 per share.

在貸款出售之後，我們進入一項 2 億美元的加速股票回購計畫。截至目前為止，今年我們已回購約 1,200 萬股，相當於 2025 年底流通在外股數的 6%，平均回購價格為每股 21.50 美元。

Since 2020, we have reduced shares outstanding by approximately 58% at an average price of $17.15 per share, underscoring our disciplined approach to long-term value creation. We expect to fully utilize our $500 million share repurchase authorization during the calendar year 2026.

自 2020 年以來，我們以每股平均 17.15 美元的價格，將流通在外股數減少約 58%，凸顯我們在長期價值創造上的紀律化作法。我們預期在 2026 曆年內完全用盡 5 億美元的股票回購授權額度。

Strong ongoing investor demand in the structured finance markets continue to support capacity for both seasoned portfolio sales and our strategic partnerships business. We have already completed meaningful groundwork for our next strategic partnership, which we expect to launch before the end of this year.

結構性金融市場中持續強勁的投資人需求，仍在支持成熟投資組合出售以及我們策略合作夥伴業務的承作量能。我們已為下一個策略合作夥伴完成重要的前期準備工作，預期在今年年底前推出。

Turning to earnings, net interest income for the first quarter was $375 million, consistent with the prior-year period. Net interest margin of 5.29% increased both sequentially and year over year, reflecting the benefit of lower funding costs and continued discipline in balance sheet management. As we progress through this year, we expect NIM to moderate modestly, reflecting the higher liquidity we're carrying, following the loan sale we executed in March.

回到獲利表現，第一季淨利息收入為 3.75 億美元，與去年同期一致。淨利差（NIM）為 5.29%，無論按季或年對年皆上升，反映較低資金成本的效益，以及持續嚴謹的資產負債表管理。隨著今年進展，我們預期 NIM 將小幅回落，反映我們在 3 月執行貸款出售後所持有的較高流動性。

We recorded an $11 million negative provision in the first quarter, driven primarily by $131 million release of reserves associated with loan sales and loans held-for-sale, partially offset by growth in loan commitments and updates to our economic assumptions. Our reserve rate was 6.05% at the end of the quarter, modestly higher than the prior quarter and reflective of seasonal origination patterns, rather than changes in underlying credit performance.

第一季我們認列 1,100 萬美元的負向備抵提列（provision），主要由於與貸款出售及持作待售貸款相關的備抵釋出 1.31 億美元所致，部分被貸款承諾成長以及經濟假設更新所抵銷。本季末備抵率為 6.05%，較前一季小幅提高，反映季節性的放款發放型態，而非基礎信用表現的變化。

Credit quality across new originations remains strong, with co-signer rates increasing to 95% and average FICO at approval rising modestly to 754. It's interesting to note that, just five years ago, our co-signer rate was 86% and our average FICO approval was 750. The change reflects a deliberate, multi-year, and persistent focus on enhancing credit quality.

新承作貸款的整體信用品質仍然強勁，共同簽署人比率提高至95%，核准時的平均FICO分數亦小幅上升至754。值得注意的是，就在五年前，我們的共同簽署人比率為86%，平均核准FICO為750。這項變化反映了我們有意識、跨多年且持續聚焦於提升信用品質。

Across the portfolio, delinquency trends were stable. Loans delinquent, 30 days or more, were 3.98% of loans and repayment at the end of the quarter, modestly lower than at the end of 2025, with later-stage delinquency buckets remaining steady at 1%. Net charge-offs for the quarter were $89 million, modestly ahead of our expectations.

就整體投資組合而言，逾期趨勢保持穩定。逾期30天以上的貸款占期末在償貸款的3.98%，較2025年年底小幅下降，而較後期的逾期分層仍維持在1%。本季淨沖銷為8,900萬美元，略高於我們的預期。

First-quarter non-interest expenses were $171 million compared to $155 million in the year-ago quarter. This increase primarily reflects targeted investments to support growth, particularly across our graduate lending programs, while maintaining a strong efficiency ratio of 30.6% for the quarter.

第一季非利息費用為1.71億美元，去年同期為1.55億美元。此增幅主要反映為支持成長所進行的針對性投資，特別是在我們的研究生貸款方案，同時本季仍維持30.6%的強勁效率比率。

Finally, our liquidity and capital positions remain solid. We ended the quarter with liquidity of 21.2% of total assets. Total risk-based capital was 13.7%. Common Equity Tier 1 capital was 12.4%. We continue to believe we are well positioned to grow our business and return capital to shareholders.

最後，我們的流動性與資本部位仍然穩健。本季末流動性占總資產的21.2%。總風險基礎資本比率為13.7%。普通股權第一級資本比率（CET1）為12.4%。我們仍相信自身具備良好條件以擴大業務並向股東返還資本。

I'll now turn the call back to Jon.

接下來我把電話交回給Jon。

Thanks, Pete. We are pleased with our first-quarter performance and the momentum it provides for the year ahead. Let me conclude with a few thoughts about the higher education environment and an update on our guidance.

謝謝你，Pete。我們對第一季表現感到滿意，且這為接下來一年的動能奠定基礎。我最後想分享幾點對高等教育環境的看法，並更新我們的財測指引。

We believe students and families continue to see strong value in higher education. Our upcoming How America Plans for College report will show that nearly 90% of those surveyed view higher education as an investment; over 80% believe it's worth the cost; and nearly three-quarters would rather borrow than forgo college. This sentiment is also reflected in improving recent college enrolment trends and FAFSA completion rates that are up almost 20% from this time last year.

我們認為學生與家庭仍持續看見高等教育的高度價值。我們即將發布的《美國如何規劃大學》報告將顯示，受訪者中近90%將高等教育視為一項投資；超過80%認為其值得成本；且近四分之三的人寧可借款也不願放棄上大學。這樣的情緒也反映在近期大學入學趨勢改善，以及FAFSA完成率較去年同期上升近20%。

Colleges, universities, and other higher-education institutions are continuing to innovate to ensure that their students have the skills to compete in the future economy. We see schools integrating AI-related coursework into new and traditional programs. Students are also responding by better aligning their majors and skill sets with those likely needed in an AI-enabled future.

大學、學院及其他高等教育機構持續創新，以確保學生具備在未來經濟中競爭所需的技能。我們看到學校將AI相關課程整合進新的與傳統的學程中。學生也透過更好地使其主修與技能組合，對齊AI賦能未來可能需要的能力來回應。

The employment picture for recent college grads remains resilient, even during times of economic uncertainty. While unemployment among recent graduates temporarily rose last summer, the gap versus historical norms closed in March.

即使在經濟不確定時期，近期大學畢業生的就業情勢仍具韌性。雖然去年夏天近期畢業生失業率一度上升，但與歷史常態的差距已在3月收斂。

Reflecting this confidence, a recent National Association of Colleges and Employers survey indicated employers expect to increase new graduate hiring this academic year by 5.6%. With this backdrop, we feel well positioned, as we look ahead to the balance of the year and beyond.

反映這份信心，近期全國大學與雇主協會（NACE）的一項調查指出，雇主預期本學年將把新畢業生招募提高5.6%。在此背景下，展望今年餘下時間及更長遠未來，我們認為自身處於有利位置。

Let me now turn to our 2026 guidance. We expect our diluted earnings per common share for 2026 to be between $3.10 and $3.20. This revised outlook assumes the full utilization of our $500 million share repurchase authorization and roughly $1 billion of incremental loan sales beyond our initial plan. At the same time, we are reaffirming all other elements of our 2026 outlook, including originations growth, net charge-offs, and net interest expense metrics.

接著我說明我們對2026年的指引。我們預期2026年普通股稀釋後每股盈餘介於3.10至3.20美元之間。此修訂後展望假設我們將完全動用5億美元的庫藏股回購授權，並在原先計畫之外額外進行約10億美元的增量貸款出售。同時，我們重申2026年展望的其他所有要素，包括承作量成長、淨沖銷與淨利息費用等指標。

With that, let's open the call for questions.

接下來我們開放提問。

(Operator Instructions) Terry Ma, Barclays.

（接線員指示）Terry Ma，巴克萊。

You mentioned we should expect another partnership by year end. Any early color on how we should think about it? And then, as we take a step back with an additional partner -- and I think you just mentioned an incremental $1 billion of loan sales -- are you just transitioning more to a capital-light model? Should we, like, expect the balance sheet to shrink a little bit more this year?

你提到我們應該預期年底前會再有一個合作夥伴。對於我們該如何看待這件事，有沒有一些初步的說明？另外，當我們退一步看、在新增合作夥伴之後——而且我想你剛提到額外10億美元的貸款出售——你們是否正在更多地轉向輕資本（capital-light）模式？我們是否應該預期今年資產負債表會再縮小一些？

Thanks for the question, Terry. On the first part of that, when we launched the inaugural partnership with KKR last year, we indicated that it was our intention to build this into a business. That has been part of our plan all along.

謝謝你的問題，Terry。先就第一部分而言，去年我們與KKR啟動首個合作夥伴關係時，我們就表示我們的意圖是把這發展成一項業務。這一直都是我們計畫的一部分。

We have started discussions with some of the folks that were involved in our process last year and were not the final partner that we went with. Those are early days but well underway. We are confident that we will get something done by the end of this year.

我們已開始與去年參與我們流程、但最終未成為我們合作夥伴的一些人士展開討論。目前仍在早期階段，但進展良好。我們有信心在今年年底前能完成一項合作。

I think, in the context of growing the partnerships, I will remind that the initial KKR partnership was really sized and scoped to deal with our traditional undergrad student loan product. And so we always knew that we were going to need to expand and grow that to be at scale for the grad opportunity. We are working on getting ahead of that so that we have something in place, well in advance of when the major increase in volume from grad comes online.

我想在擴大合作夥伴關係的脈絡下，我要提醒的是，最初與KKR的合作在規模與範圍上，主要是為了處理我們傳統的大學部學生貸款產品。因此我們一直知道，為了把握研究生機會，我們需要擴充並成長到具規模的程度。我們正努力提前布局，讓相關安排能在研究生業務量大幅增加上線之前就已就緒。

Got it. And then, maybe just on credit. It sounds like the borrowers exiting mod are performing a little bit better than expected. Any color on new mods thus far this year, whether or not that is in line with your expectations? And then, as we look forward, should we expect the percentage of borrowers in mod to start to come down this year? Any way to think about that?

了解。另外可能就信用方面。聽起來退出展延（mod）的借款人表現比預期稍好。能否談談今年迄今新增的展延（mods）情況，是否符合你們的預期？再往前看，今年處於展延（mod）中的借款人占比是否會開始下降？有沒有什麼思考方式？

Yeah. I think, in the context of the exits, as we said, we are pleased with the early performance. It's in line with the outlook that we had when we set that charge-off guidance for the year. The absolute value of increased demand will fluctuate, as the payment waves come through and depending on the overall size of those payment waves. Nothing really out of the ordinary in that regard for this. The overall level of loan mods, we believe, will begin to stabilize, as we move through this year and into next.

是的。就退出展延的部分，如我們所說，我們對早期表現感到滿意。這與我們在設定今年沖銷指引時的展望一致。需求增加的絕對量會波動，取決於付款波次的到來以及付款波次的整體規模。就此而言，沒有什麼特別異常。我們認為整體貸款展延（mods）水準將在今年並延續到明年開始趨於穩定。

Moshe Orenbuch, TD Cowen.

Moshe Orenbuch，TD Cowen。

Jon, could you talk a little bit about how you see the developing competitive environment in the Grad PLUS market? We saw some announcements this week from one of your major competitors but have not seen that many across the board. Maybe you could add a little finer point on that, if you would?

Jon，你能否談談你如何看待Grad PLUS市場競爭環境的發展？我們本週看到你們一個主要競爭對手發布了一些公告，但整體而言還沒有看到太多。如果可以的話，能否就此再更精準地補充一下？

Yeah, Moshe, happy to. Obviously, I think everyone understands the opportunity that the PLUS reform provides. I think different competitors certainly look at the market opportunity and the segments of the market opportunity differently. I think there are some who have expressed more interest for certain segments than for others.

好的，Moshe，很樂意。很明顯，我想大家都理解PLUS改革所帶來的機會。我認為不同競爭者對市場機會以及市場機會中的各個區隔，確實有不同的看法。我認為有些競爭者對某些區隔表達了較高興趣，而對其他區隔則相對較低。

But I think we certainly do expect there to be a heightened level of competition, as a new market normal shakes out here over the next couple of years. We see a little bit of early evidence of that, just in things like some of the digital marketing spend. We can see some activity from some players and begin to understand a little bit of the testing and the programs that they are looking to develop.

但我確實認為，隨著未來幾年這裡的新市場常態逐步成形，我們肯定預期競爭程度會提高。我們已經看到一些早期跡象，例如部分數位行銷支出的變化。我們也能看到一些參與者的動作，並開始稍微了解他們正在測試的內容，以及他們希望開發的方案與計畫。

I think, more importantly, though, we have tremendous confidence in our incoming position. We have incredible confidence in the work that we are doing to prepare for this opportunity.

不過我認為更重要的是，我們對自身即將到來的競爭位置充滿信心。我們也對為把握這個機會所做的準備工作抱持極高信心。

I think the credit models, the relationships with schools, the organic marketing channels that we have really pioneered here over the last five years serve as a really important foundation. All of those will need to be enhanced, grown, and expanded, in particular, to get after the grad opportunity. While there are a lot of similarities, there are differences. I think you've heard in my prepared remarks, we are leaving no stone unturned in preparing to compete rigorously.

我認為，我們在過去五年真正開創並建立的信用模型、與學校的合作關係，以及有機行銷通路，構成了一個非常重要的基礎。所有這些都需要被強化、成長並擴大，特別是為了掌握研究所（grad）的機會。雖然有許多相似之處，但也存在差異。我想你在我事先準備的發言中也聽到了，我們在準備進行嚴格競爭方面不遺餘力。

Whether it is a lot more competitive, modestly more competitive, or not more competitive at all, we feel really great about what we are doing; how we are going to show up; and, most importantly, our ability to serve students, families, and our important university partners because we know every loan we do is enabling someone’s higher education dream.

不論競爭變得更激烈、稍微更激烈，或完全沒有更激烈，我們都對自己正在做的事感到非常有信心；我們將如何出場；以及最重要的，我們服務學生、家庭與重要大學合作夥伴的能力，因為我們知道，我們做的每一筆貸款都在成就某個人的高等教育夢想。

Got it. Thanks. Maybe as a follow-up, just on the loan sale process -- kudos to you and the team for recognizing to do a loan sale and take advantage of that arbitrage -- how do you think about the outlook and balancing the various types of loan sale opportunities, as you go forward; and probably adding in the potential for an incremental partner that you had talked about?

了解。謝謝。也許追問一下，關於貸款出售流程——你和團隊能夠認知到要做貸款出售並利用那個套利機會，值得稱讚——展望未來，你如何看待並平衡各種類型的貸款出售機會？以及可能再加上你先前提到的新增合作夥伴的可能性？

Yeah. Thanks, Moshe. That's a good question. Just a reminder. The KKR structure, again, focused on traditional undergrad product. That was sized at a $2 billion a year commitment; think of that, roughly, academic year. As we think about this next partnership, we're looking to build upon that to create capacity for low sale of grad originations and start to build capacity for the real growth in the grad space that will come, '27 and '28.

是的。謝謝你，Moshe。這是個好問題。先提醒一下。KKR 的架構再次是聚焦於傳統的大學部（undergrad）產品。其規模是一年 20 億美元的承諾；你可以把它大致視為一個學年。當我們思考下一個合作夥伴關係時，我們希望在此基礎上再往上建立，為研究所（grad）放款的貸款出售建立產能，並開始為研究所領域在 2027 與 2028 年將出現的實質成長建立產能。

As we get that started, I would expect that the way that we will do that will be similar to how we did the first transaction, which is enter into a flow agreement but also start the process with some season portfolio sale. That's within our expectation for the latter part of this year.

當我們開始推動時，我預期我們會採取與第一筆交易類似的方式，也就是簽訂一個流量協議（flow agreement），同時也會以一些已累積一定期間的投組出售（seasoned portfolio sale）來啟動流程。這符合我們對今年下半年時點的預期。

Again, I think, in terms of overall balance sheet size, our original guidance and initial plan was a flattish balance sheet. I think now with this shift in our approach on accelerating capital return, as Jon said in his prepared remarks, it's probably an incremental billion dollars of loan sales over our original plan.

再說一次，就整體資產負債表規模而言，我們原先的指引與初始計畫是資產負債表大致持平。我認為現在，隨著我們在加速資本回饋方面的做法有所調整，正如 Jon 在其事先準備的發言中所說，這可能會比原計畫額外增加約 10 億美元的貸款出售。

That would be flat to down-ish overall balance sheet. We'll fine-tune that, as we see the origination levels coming in during peak and we have a better line of sight to overall levels of growth in the business.

這將使整體資產負債表大致持平到略為下降。我們會在旺季看到放款量的實際表現、並對業務整體成長水準有更清晰的能見度後，再進一步微調。

Jeff Adelson, Morgan Stanley.

Jeff Adelson，摩根士丹利。

I'm just curious if -- Jon, you made the comment on the recent college graduate unemployment trends headed in the right direction once again. You brought up the survey of employers intending to increase hiring by about 5% or 6% this year.

我只是好奇——Jon，你提到近期大學畢業生失業趨勢再次朝正確方向發展。你也提到有雇主調查顯示，今年計畫將招聘增加約 5% 或 6%。

My question is: How do you think about the benefit of that flowing through to Sallie Mae? Is that something you think can really start to flatten out your delinquency trends, which look like they continue to uptick a little bit at these levels?

我的問題是：你如何看待這對 Sallie Mae 的好處會如何傳導？你認為這是否真的能開始讓你的逾期趨勢趨於平坦？因為看起來在目前水準下逾期仍在小幅上升。

Yeah, Jeff, maybe a couple of thoughts here. Pete, you should jump in, if you want to add anything. I'm not sure we yet see the unemployment trends and the hiring as a tailwind. I think what we're really describing is the slight air pocket that I think we saw in employment through the course of last summer has normalized.

是的，Jeff，這裡我先分享幾點想法。Pete，如果你想補充也請加入。我不確定我們是否已經把失業趨勢與招聘視為一個順風因素。我認為我們真正描述的是：我覺得去年夏天整個就業情況出現的那個小幅「空窗」已經回歸正常。

I think we've talked for a couple of calls now about the resiliency of students and the fungibility of the skills that are afforded by higher education and their ability to figure out a changing employment landscape. I think we've seen the evidence of that. But I'm not sure we're in a positive-enough territory versus historical norms that I would say that's deserving of a tailwind classification.

我想我們已經連續幾次電話會議談到學生的韌性、高等教育所賦予技能的可轉用性，以及他們在變動的就業環境中找到出路的能力。我認為我們已經看到相關證據。但我不確定目前是否已經正向到足以相對於歷史常態，讓我把它歸類為「順風」。

In terms of the delinquency trends, we're very comfortable with the delinquency rates where they are. As I said in my comments, they are in line and slightly better than expectations. I think, if you look at, in particular, the stability of the later-stage delinquency trends, they are where we thought we would be. I think you always have to be a little bit careful in looking at any ratio because there's both obviously a numerator and a denominator.

就逾期趨勢而言，我們對目前的逾期率水準非常放心。如我在評論中所說，它們符合、且略優於預期。我認為如果你特別看後期逾期趨勢的穩定性，它們就在我們預期的位置。我認為你在看任何比率時都必須稍微小心，因為顯然同時存在分子與分母。

When you sell a couple of billion dollars of loans earlier in the year than you expected, that could have a little bit of a denominator effect. I think prudence would suggest that be considered in interpreting the results. But we feel very solid about where we are from a delinquency perspective.

當你在年初就比預期更早出售了數十億美元的貸款，分母可能會受到一些影響。我認為審慎起見，在解讀結果時應將這點納入考量。但從逾期的角度來看，我們對目前狀況感到非常穩健。

Okay. Great. Thank you. Maybe just a quick follow-up on Grad PLUS. Obviously, you're looking for that to start kicking into gear come July. You spoke a lot about how you're preparing for that. You're talking to the schools. Maybe just a quick update of what you're seeing on the ground; and how you think those expectations are going to play out, as you hit the back half of the year and recognize -- and, obviously, it's still pretty early.

好的。很好。謝謝。也許再快速追問一下關於 Grad PLUS。顯然，你們希望它在 7 月開始啟動。你談了很多你們如何為此做準備。你們正在與學校溝通。能否簡要更新一下你們在第一線看到的情況？以及當你們進入下半年時，你認為這些預期會如何落地——當然現在仍然相當早。

Yeah. Jeff, obviously, it's very early. Peak season really hasn't started at all yet in any of the grad segments we're talking about. But maybe a couple of thoughts. One, I think our conversations with schools have been extremely positive. As you can appreciate, their number one concern, post-PLUS reform, was what is this going to mean for their ability to fill their classrooms and support their students and their higher education journey?

是的。Jeff，顯然現在還非常早。我們所談到的任何研究所（grad）細分領域，旺季其實都還完全沒有開始。但我先分享幾點想法。第一，我認為我們與學校的對話非常正面。如你所理解的，在 PLUS 改革之後，他們最關心的是：這將如何影響他們填滿教室、支持學生及其高等教育旅程的能力？

I think the work that we have done around product design, around underwriting, around terms and conditions, as we've gone through that, with schools, I think they have been quite impressed by the customer-backed thoughtfulness that we have brought to really thinking about these as new products and new businesses and deserving of a fresh set of eyes. I think they've liked the early reads.

我認為，針對產品設計、核貸（underwriting）、條款與條件等方面，我們所做的工作——在與學校逐一討論的過程中——我認為他們對我們以客戶為本所展現的周延思考印象深刻；我們確實把這些視為新產品與新業務，並認為值得用全新的視角來審視。我認為他們對早期的回饋很滿意。

I would say, as we have implemented changes -- and grad has obviously been a part of our portfolio for a long time but a small part -- we are starting to see impressive and meaningful percentage increases in our performance. Those are super-leading indicators and trends, based on small sample sizes. But I think it's not just the reaction we're getting from schools. We're actually seeing that flow through in things like early origination numbers and the like.

我會說，隨著我們已經落實一些變革——而研究生貸款（grad）顯然長期以來一直是我們投資組合的一部分，但占比不大——我們開始看到我們的表現出現令人印象深刻且具實質意義的百分比提升。這些是非常領先的指標與趨勢，但係基於較小的樣本量。但我認為不只是我們從學校端得到的反饋。我們其實也看到這些反映在例如早期放款起始（origination）數據等方面。

We feel good about the guidance that we've put out around originations. We haven't seen anything that leads us to believe it's not achievable. But we're going to continue to soldier away and make sure we put ourselves in the best position we can to win.

我們對於已發布、關於放款起始（originations）的指引感到樂觀。我們尚未看到任何跡象讓我們認為它不可達成。但我們會繼續努力推進，確保讓自己處於能夠勝出的最佳位置。

Don Fandetti, Wells Fargo.

Don Fandetti，富國銀行（Wells Fargo）。

I know it's early. But I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about 2027. I think, last quarter, you provided some thoughts. Obviously, you're going to have a higher base here in 2026.

我知道現在還早。但我想請你談談 2027 年。我記得上個季度你們提供了一些看法。顯然，2026 年你們的基期會更高。

I think the only thing I'm really prepared to talk about with regard to 2027 is, like, the origination opportunity that we see from grad. I think we've sized that at roughly a $5 billion incremental opportunity over time. The way that will size in really will be modest this year and then grow more exponentially as we go into '27 and into '28. In terms of overall guidance around earnings or anything like that, I wouldn't feel comfortable this early giving any reads on that.

我想，關於 2027 年我唯一真正準備好談的是，我們從研究生貸款（grad）看到的放款起始（origination）機會。我們估算，隨時間推進，這大約是額外增加 50 億美元的機會。其規模在今年會相對溫和，然後在 2027 年與 2028 年會以更接近指數型的方式成長。至於整體獲利或任何類似的指引，我不會在這麼早的時點就對此給出任何判讀。

Okay. I heard the comments on the potential new partners. Obviously, there's been a lot of dislocation in private credit. It sounds like you're not seeing any hesitancy or different terms. Is that maybe just because it's consumer product? Or what are your thoughts on the future demand from private credit?

好的。我聽到你提到潛在的新合作夥伴。顯然，私募信貸（private credit）出現了很多錯位與震盪。聽起來你們沒有看到任何猶豫或條款變化。這是否可能只是因為這是消費金融產品？或者你對私募信貸未來的需求有何看法？

Yeah. I think, obviously, there's been pockets of private credit that have been challenged. I think even within the structured finance or ABF part of private credit, there's been areas where there's been frauds or other issues. But that's really caused kind of like a -- more of a flight to quality. We've got a very high-quality asset type that still has very strong demand for it, particularly in the consumer space, given the ability for us to provide duration, as well as high yield and low losses.

是的。我想，顯然私募信貸中有一些領域確實面臨挑戰。即便在私募信貸的結構性融資或 ABF（資產擔保融資）部分，也有一些區塊出現詐欺或其他問題。但那其實更像是引發了一種——更偏向「資金轉向高品質」（flight to quality）。我們擁有非常高品質的資產類型，需求仍然非常強勁，特別是在消費金融領域，因為我們能提供久期，同時具備高收益與低損失。

We've continued to see strong demand, both for our own funding securitizations, but also the securitizations that we do on behalf of the loan buyers have been well subscribed and well-priced. We expect that to continue as we move forward here. Certainly, in the context of beginning dialogue for setting up next partnerships, we've had great engagement from the interested parties and feel like the market demand is still really there for our product.

我們持續看到強勁需求，不論是我們自有資金的證券化發行，或是我們代表貸款買方所做的證券化，認購都很踴躍、定價也良好。我們預期在接下來的推進過程中，這種情況會持續。當然，在開始就建立下一批合作關係進行對話的背景下，我們與有興趣的各方互動非常良好，也覺得市場對我們產品的需求確實仍然存在。

Sanjay Sakhrani, KBW.

Sanjay Sakhrani，KBW。

Jon, maybe just to put a little bit of a finer point on some of the initiatives you have and the step-up in expenses in 2026. I know you guys are -- it sounds like you feel pretty good about it. How do we see it unfold and measure it as we look out across this year and next? I know Pete talked about a step-up in originations next year from the opportunity. But how do we see it unfold? Do we get leverage off of that into next year?

Jon，也許請你更精準地談談你們的一些計畫，以及 2026 年費用的上升。我知道你們——聽起來對此相當有信心。當我們觀察今年與明年時，應該如何看它的展開並衡量？我知道 Pete 談到明年會因為機會而帶來放款起始（originations）的提升。但我們應該如何看它的展開？我們能在明年從中看到槓桿效應嗎？

Sanjay, thanks. Great question. I think I would refer back to maybe also some of the comments I made during the fourth-quarter earnings call. I think our view is, yes, expenses are elevated this year on both a marketing basis, as we start to go after the expanded opportunity, but also a lot of the fixed costs, some of the things we've talked about around products, systems, and customer experience and the like.

Sanjay，謝謝。問得很好。我想我會回到我在第四季財報電話會議中提到的一些評論。我們的看法是：是的，今年費用在兩方面都偏高——一方面是行銷層面，因為我們開始追逐擴大的機會；另一方面是許多固定成本，包括我們談過的產品、系統與客戶體驗等。

I think what we've committed to and what we still believe in is that rate of expense growth will moderate after this year. We may see a slight uptick in our efficiency ratio. But we actually expect, at the end of the growth period, for our efficiency ratio to be better than it was at the starting point.

我們所承諾、也仍然相信的是：今年之後，費用成長率會趨於緩和。我們的效率比率可能會略有上升。但我們其實預期，在成長期結束時，我們的效率比率會優於起點時的水準。

To put a little bit of rough-justice math to it. If we were at a [mid-30s] efficiency ratio historically, I think during this time of growth, we may get up to the high-30s, which, by the way, I think is still a pretty compelling efficiency ratio.

用一個大致的粗略算法來說。如果我們過去的效率比率大約在 30% 中段，我想在這段成長期間，我們可能會升到 30% 高段；順帶一提，我認為這仍然是相當有吸引力的效率比率。

I think, if the market evolves the way we think it's going to and if our share evolves the way we think it's going to, I think, by the end of the growth period, we said we would hope to be back down in the low-30%s. I think that is the very definition of operating leverage. At the end of the day, we recognize the need to invest against what we both think is both a great market opportunity for us but, also, a real need for students and university partners. We think that's a relatively short invest ahead of the curve, with real leverage coming in not very many years after that.

我想，如果市場如我們所預期地演變、而我們的市占也如我們所預期地提升，那麼在成長期結束時，我們說過希望能回到 30% 低段。我認為這正是營運槓桿（operating leverage）的最佳定義。歸根結底，我們認知到必須投資：一方面是我們認為對我們而言是很好的市場機會；另一方面，對學生與大學合作夥伴而言也確實有其需求。我們認為這是一段相對短期、超前於曲線的投資，而真正的槓桿效益會在之後不需要太多年就會顯現。

And then, Pete, just so I have the numbers correct in terms of the guidance raise and the fact that you're selling another billion dollars. By my math, if you use the 6% or so gain and then the reserve release, it sounds like most of that raise is just the mechanics of the $1 billion being sold at some point in the rest of the year? Any idea on timing?

另外，Pete，為了確認我對數字的理解：就指引上調以及你們又要出售額外 10 億美元這件事。按我的算法，如果用大約 6% 的收益再加上準備金回轉（reserve release），聽起來這次上調的大部分只是因為今年剩餘時間某個時點會出售這 10 億美元所帶來的機械性影響？對時點有任何想法嗎？

Yeah. Sure. I think, in the context of the full-year guidance, the increase in the EPS guidance for the full year is roughly split half and half between share count reduction and incremental gain from the incremental loan sale.

是的。當然。我想，在全年指引的脈絡下，全年 EPS 指引上調的幅度，大約一半來自股數減少，另一半來自額外貸款出售所帶來的增量收益。

And so, if you think about the mechanics of what we discussed here of what's happened in the first quarter, we really accelerated that through the actions that we've taken and have a much lower share count for a longer period during the year. And so that's how you should really think about that. We haven't updated any other elements of our original guidance. The impact is really just that. The incremental loan sale gain and the share count reduction. It's roughly half and half for the full year.

因此，如果你去看我們這裡討論的第一季已發生的機制，我們透過採取的行動把進度大幅提前，讓全年更長一段期間維持更低的流通股數。所以你應該用這樣的方式來理解。我們沒有更新原先指引中的其他任何要素。影響基本上就是這些。額外貸款出售的收益，以及股數減少。就全年而言，大約各占一半。

Mark DeVries, Deutsche Bank

Mark DeVries，德意志銀行（Deutsche Bank）

Jon, I believe you indicated that the FAFSA completion rates are up almost 20% from this time last year. Do you have a sense for what's behind that? Is this a reflection of a significant increase in just demand for higher education? Is there something wonky behind that? If it is demand, what does it say for your conviction just around your origination guidance?

Jon，我相信你提到 FAFSA 的完成率比去年同期上升了將近 20%。你是否了解背後原因？這是否反映了對高等教育需求的大幅增加？還是背後有什麼異常因素？如果是需求所致，這對你們在放款起始（origination）指引方面的信心意味著什麼？

Yeah. Mark, I think it's probably too early to know exactly all the different factors that are driving that rate. This is obviously in the moment.

是的。Mark，我認為現在可能還太早，還無法確切知道究竟有哪些不同因素在推動那個比率。這顯然是當下的情況。

I think what we've seen is, if you exclude two years ago, when you'll remember the Department of Education rolled out a new FAFSA form and maybe had a few implementation hiccups along the way, I think what this really reflects is a continued steady drumbeat of growth, which I think matches well with what we've seen around general trends in the percentage of eligible high school seniors who are choosing to go to college.

我認為我們看到的是，如果排除兩年前——你會記得教育部推出了新的 FAFSA 表格，且在推行過程中可能出現了一些執行上的小插曲——我認為這實際上反映的是持續且穩定的成長節奏，而這也與我們在整體趨勢上所看到的相當一致：符合資格的高中應屆畢業生中，選擇就讀大學的比例。

A lot has been made around the demographic trends. But I think that batting average, if you want to call it that, of how many people actually go has also been a nice contributor to the growth in enrollment over a period of time.

外界對人口結構趨勢談了很多。但我認為，如果你想這麼稱呼的話，那個「打擊率」——也就是實際上有多少人真的去就讀——也在一段時間內對入學人數的成長做出了不錯的貢獻。

But if I broaden it out a little bit and look at our soon-to-be-released survey because I think that gives Mark a little bit more detailed insight, I think what it really shows is the promise of higher education and the dream of higher education continues to be, really, a key thing for many, many students and families out there.

不過如果我把視角再拉大一點，看看我們即將發布的調查，因為我認為那能讓 Mark 得到更細緻的洞見，我覺得它真正顯示的是：高等教育的承諾與高等教育的夢想，確實仍然是許許多多學生與家庭的一個關鍵所在。

There's been a lot of talk about the changing cost of higher education and is it worth it. I think our survey says pretty conclusively that the vast majority of American families out there really see that it is and understand the key to job-creation skills; understands the key to economic mobility; and understands the role that I think it's played historically that we believe it will play, going forward.

大家對高等教育成本的變化以及「值不值得」有很多討論。我認為我們的調查相當明確地指出，絕大多數美國家庭確實認為值得，並且理解其對創造就業所需技能的關鍵性；理解其對經濟向上流動的關鍵性；也理解它在歷史上所扮演的角色，而我們相信它未來也將持續扮演這樣的角色。

I look forward to the survey coming out. I think that will probably happen next week. I think a lot of great data in there that, Mark, will give you even more insight into your question.

我很期待這份調查發布。我想大概會在下週。裡面有很多很棒的數據，Mark，會讓你對你的問題有更多洞見。

Caroline Latta, Bank of America.

Caroline Latta，美國銀行。

I think you mentioned last quarter that you expect, after 2026, that the private education portfolio will inflect up to 1% to 2% growth. Is that expectation changed, if you were to add another private credit partner? Or did that comment contemplate another potential partner?

我記得你們上季提到，預期在 2026 年之後，私人教育投資組合將回升到 1% 到 2% 的成長。如果你們再新增一位私募信貸合作夥伴，這個預期會改變嗎？還是說那段評論本來就已經把另一個潛在合作夥伴納入考量？

Yeah. Thanks, Caroline. I think, in our original long-range planning that formed the basis of our original guidance for this year, we assumed flattish balance sheet this year. We assumed that 1% to 2% growth going into 2027 and getting up to the mid-single digits over time.

是的。謝謝你，Caroline。我認為在我們最初的長期規劃中——也就是形成我們今年最初指引基礎的那份規劃——我們假設今年資產負債表大致持平。我們假設在邁入 2027 年時有 1% 到 2% 的成長，並在時間推移下提升到中個位數的成長。

I think, obviously, with the change in approach around acceleration of the share repurchase this year, we'll probably be a little down this year, call it, $1 billion lower than flattish. We would look to still step back into growth over time.

我想很明顯地，隨著今年在加速庫藏股回購方面的做法有所調整，我們今年可能會略為下滑——大概比「持平」少約 10 億美元。我們仍會在時間推移下重新回到成長軌道。

I don't think the creation of a new partnership really changes that dynamic. We still have a broad opportunity around originations growth that will drive -- if we don't do those partnerships or other types of loan sales -- a much higher rate of balance sheet growth than that. We do have lots of different levers that we can choose to optimize that. What it will impact, though, is the mix of seasoned sale versus new origination sale, as we step into 2027 and beyond.

我不認為建立新的合作關係會真正改變這個動態。我們在放款承作量（originations）成長方面仍有很大的機會——如果我們不做這些合作或其他類型的貸款出售——資產負債表的成長率會遠高於那個水準。我們確實有很多不同的槓桿可以選擇來做最佳化。不過它會影響的是：當我們邁入 2027 年及之後，已存續資產出售（seasoned sale）與新承作出售（new origination sale）的組合。

Again, that's purposeful because the grad opportunity for which we don't currently have a flow arrangement for will begin to become a much larger portion of our originations, as we move into '27 and then, again into 2028. We want to make sure we've got a good complement of funding capabilities to meet that need.

再次強調，這是有意為之，因為我們目前尚未建立流量安排（flow arrangement）的研究生（grad）機會，將在我們進入 2027 年、以及再進入 2028 年時，逐步成為我們承作量中更大的一部分。我們希望確保具備良好的資金來源能力組合，以滿足那項需求。

Great. Thank you. And then, maybe just given that the buyback this year, if you complete the plan, will be a pretty big step up, how should we be thinking about the cadence of buybacks and capital returns further out into 2027 and 2028?

很好。謝謝。另外，考量到今年的回購若完成計畫將是相當大幅的提升，我們應該如何看待在 2027 年與 2028 年更往後的回購節奏與資本回饋？

Yeah. Again, I think, if you look at our original plan, we were targeting roughly 5% to 6% of outstanding share count would be part of the buyback within a year. Though, I think, as we start to normalize, that's probably a reasonable benchmark, going forward.

是的。再次，我認為如果你看我們原本的計畫，我們的目標是在一年內回購約占流通在外股數 5% 到 6% 的股份。我想，隨著我們開始回歸常態，這大概會是未來一個合理的基準。

As always, as market conditions change and if there's an opportunity to do more than that, then we would do what we did in the first quarter, which is accelerate some loan sales and take advantage of that market dislocation.

一如既往，當市場狀況改變、且如果有機會做得更多，我們就會像第一季所做的那樣：加速一些貸款出售，並利用那次市場錯位的機會。

John Hecht, Jefferies.

John Hecht，Jefferies。

Maybe quick, just relative to our forecast, you had a beat on OpEx or upside EPS and lower OpEx. Maybe, can you talk about the cadence on investments in the PLUS program over the year?

或許快速問一下，相較於我們的預測，你們在營運費用（OpEx）上有優於預期，或是 EPS 上行、OpEx 更低。能否談談今年在 PLUS 計畫上的投資節奏？

Yeah. Sure. We're getting ready for peak season, which starts in the summer. If you think about the comments we made at year end, when we talked about expenses for this year, of the increase year over year, we said roughly a third was increase around marketing and customer acquisition, and roughly a third was the preparation for the opportunity in terms of the things Jon talked about around program design, customer experience, and some of the tech changes we'll need to enable.

好的。當然。我們正在為旺季做準備，旺季從夏季開始。如果你回想我們在年末談到今年費用時的評論，針對年增的部分，我們說大約三分之一是行銷與客戶獲取的增加，另外大約三分之一是為機會做準備——也就是 Jon 提到的計畫設計、客戶體驗，以及我們需要的一些技術變更以支援推動。

And so that readiness will be more front-loaded before peak. The marketing spend will be more in the moment in that peak season. Again, our staging of expenses and our plan for expenses, we were modestly ahead of plan for the first quarter. But we feel, still, comfortable with our overall guidance range for the full year.

因此，這些準備工作會在旺季前更偏向前置投入。行銷支出則會更集中在旺季當下。再次說明，我們的費用投入節奏與費用計畫，在第一季略微領先於計畫。但我們仍對全年整體指引區間感到有信心。

Okay. And then, second question is the evolution of the program management servicing fees. Was there anything in this quarter with that? And then, how do we think that grows over the course of this year?

了解。第二個問題是計畫管理服務費（program management servicing fees）的演進。本季在這方面有什麼變化嗎？另外，我們該如何看待它在今年內的成長？

Sure. The inaugural partnership that we inked with KKR in the fourth quarter of last year has the program management fee built into that. Ando so, as we have completed sales of assets into that, those program management fees will start to earn on of the AUM, if you will, under management.

好的。我們在去年第四季與 KKR 簽署的首個合作夥伴關係，已將計畫管理費納入其中。因此，隨著我們完成向該合作關係出售資產，這些計畫管理費將開始按管理資產規模（AUM）計提（如果你願意這麼說的話）。

We did another $1.3 billion of sales to that partnership in the quarter. We will continue to build on that. As we grow the next partnership, our anticipation is that those program management fees or something akin to those program management fees will be part of the economics of those deals, as well. Our intent, again, with this is we can continue to build more recurring fee-based revenue over time and give ourselves a different capital allocation capability with these forward flow sales.

本季我們又向該合作關係出售了 13 億美元的資產。我們會持續在此基礎上擴大。隨著我們建立下一個合作夥伴關係，我們預期那些計畫管理費，或類似的計畫管理費，也會成為那些交易經濟條件的一部分。我們的用意同樣是：隨時間推移，我們可以持續建立更多經常性、以費用為基礎的收入，並透過這些遠期流量出售（forward flow sales）讓自己具備不同的資本配置能力。

Rick Shane, JP Morgan.

Rick Shane，摩根大通。

I'd like to talk a little bit about credit. You guys provided an update on your net charge-off guidance for the year and reiterated your prior guide. I'm curious, when you think about the credit performance of the portfolio, where it is in your targeted range? Is it within the range? Is it above the range? Is it below the range, long term? To the extent it is varying from the range, is there anything you're doing on the underwriting side to either tighten or widen the credit bucket in order to meet that efficient frontier?

我想稍微談一下信用。你們更新了今年的淨沖銷（net charge-off）指引，並重申先前的指引。我好奇的是，當你們看投資組合的信用表現時，它在你們目標區間中的哪個位置？是在區間內嗎？是在區間之上嗎？長期來看是在區間之下嗎？如果它偏離該區間，你們在承作審核（underwriting）方面是否有做任何事，來收緊或放寬信用範圍，以符合那個效率前緣（efficient frontier）？

Rick, it's Jon. Couple of thoughts. Tell me if this gets to your question. First of all, I think we are operating within the long-term credit range that we talked about. I think we said, a couple of years ago, we thought the right destination was high-[1s] to low-[2s].

Rick，我是Jon。有幾點想法。你告訴我這是否回答了你的問題。首先，我認為我們目前的運作仍在我們先前談到的長期信用區間之內。我記得我們在幾年前說過，我們認為合理的目標區間是高[1%]到低[2%]。

I think we spent a lot of time in the fourth-quarter earnings call, when we were laying out guidance, doing a bit of a crosswalk around that percentage to the loan or the charge-off guidance that we've given for this year, recognizing that the wild card there was the shift in strategy to sell new originations versus seasoned portfolios and a little bit of the distortive effect that that had on our legacy ratio.

我想我們在第四季財報電話會議、也就是在提出財測指引時，花了很多時間針對該百分比與我們今年提供的貸款（或淨沖銷）指引之間做了一些對照說明；同時也認知到其中的不確定因素在於策略轉變——出售新發放貸款而非已成熟的投資組合——以及這對我們既有比率所造成的一些扭曲效應。

But I think we believe we're operating within that range and certainly feel good about the guidance that we've given out. I think it's important to remember how we got there. We've talked about this a bit over the years. But we started, three or four years ago, a very persistent, purposeful program to really look at and to optimize the credit buy box that we have and to make sure that we felt great about all of those originations.

但我認為我們相信自己是在該區間內運作，並且對我們所提供的指引當然也很有信心。我認為重要的是要記得我們是如何走到這一步的。這些年我們也談過一些。但我們在三、四年前啟動了一項非常持續且有目的性的計畫，真正去檢視並優化我們的信用核准範圍（credit buy box），並確保我們對所有這些放款發放都非常有把握。

We've chronicled a couple of different times the extent of that. But suffice it to say that I think the changes that we made had a meaningful impact on origination volume. One of our great sources of pride was our ability to grow both nominal levels of originations and share, while still tightening the credit box during that whole time.

我們也在幾次場合記錄過其程度。但簡而言之，我認為我們所做的變更對放款發放量產生了顯著影響。我們引以為傲的一點是，在整段期間即使收緊信用核准範圍，我們仍能同時提升放款發放的名目規模與市占。

I do think there is still a tail to come. We've provided these details from time to time. But we still do have people who took those loans as freshmen and sophomores; and maybe haven't entered full P&I yet, who are still coming into the heart of their repayment and maximum stress period underneath the old underwriting regime.

我確實認為仍有一些尾端效應尚未完全顯現。我們也不時提供這些細節。但我們仍有一些人在大一、大二時就借了這些貸款；而且可能尚未完全進入本息（P&I）全額償還階段，他們仍在舊承作（核貸）制度下，逐步進入還款的核心期與壓力最大的期間。

I think, in some respects, the full effect has yet to be felt in the portfolio. We feel great about those credit changes, underwriting changes, we've made. We feel great about how our loss-mitigation programs are performing. We think we are generating the exact loss profile that we would hope for during a time that I would point out has been relatively stressed for some of these borrowers, with the elevated unemployment rate that I talked about before over the last six months. I think, all in all, we feel really good about these results and look forward to the portfolio continuing to season.

我認為在某些方面，投資組合中尚未完全感受到全部影響。我們對所做的信用調整、核貸調整非常有信心。我們也對損失緩解（loss-mitigation）方案的表現很有信心。我們認為在我想指出的這段期間——對部分借款人而言相對承壓，且如我先前提到過去六個月失業率偏高——我們正在產生正是我們所期望的損失曲線。總體而言，我們對這些結果感到非常滿意，也期待投資組合持續成熟（season）。

I appreciate that. I am curious -- and I apologize. I don't know if I'm missing something. But do you provide an average loan in repayment number anywhere in the disclosures? The reason I ask is, obviously, this quarter, when we calculated a net charge-off rate as a function of loans and repayment, I'm trying to understand how much that might be distorted by loan sales.

我了解，謝謝。我有點好奇——也先說聲抱歉。我不確定是不是我漏看了什麼。但你們在揭露資料中有提供「處於還款中的平均貸款」這個數字嗎？我之所以問，是因為顯然本季我們以「還款中的貸款」作為分母來計算淨沖銷率時，我想了解其中有多少可能會被貸款出售所扭曲。

One question I should know the answer to -- and I just don't, off the top of my head -- is, are there seasoned loans in repayment that are part of the pools that you're selling? Or should we assume it is predominantly new originations that are less than 12 months, seasoned?

有個問題我應該知道答案——但我現在一時想不起來——你們出售的資產池裡是否包含已成熟、且正在還款中的貸款？還是我們應該假設主要是新發放、帳齡（seasoned）未滿12個月的貸款？

All of our portfolio sales are representative samples of the book. Really, the only exclusions there are -- loans that are in later stages of delinquency are typically excluded from those pools. And so, as we make portfolio sales, as Jon said, that can have an impact, depending on when in the quarter or when in the year we make those sales because it does impact the denominator of some of those ratio calculations.

我們所有的投資組合出售，都是該放款帳簿的具代表性樣本。基本上唯一的排除項是——通常會把處於較後期逾期階段的貸款排除在這些資產池之外。因此，當我們進行投資組合出售時，如Jon所說，這可能會產生影響，取決於我們在季度中的何時或年度中的何時進行出售，因為這確實會影響某些比率計算的分母。

I would also highlight, again, some of the commentary we made in the fourth quarter surrounding our disclosures in the 10-K. Because we calculate most of our loan disclosures on loans held for investment, because we are moving loans to a held-for-sale status in association with these forward-flow agreements, that does also have a nominal impact on some of the calculation.

我也想再次強調我們在第四季針對10-K揭露所做的一些說明。因為我們大多數的貸款揭露是以「持有供投資」（held for investment）的貸款來計算；而由於這些遠期流量（forward-flow）協議，我們會把貸款轉為「持有供出售」（held-for-sale）狀態，這也會對部分計算造成名目上的影響。

Yeah. Just for the avoidance of any confusion. I think Pete did a nice job of laying out in his talking points, also, what were the new origination sales, which were $1.3 billion. Those are obviously what the name would suggest: new origination. I think we do try to break it out separately and obviously understand the importance of needing to continue to do that, both in understanding credit metric impacts, but also premium impacts.

是的。為避免任何混淆。我認為Pete在他的重點說明中也把新發放貸款出售的部分講得很清楚，金額是13億美元。這些顧名思義就是：新發放。我想我們確實會嘗試把它分開揭露，而且也明白持續這麼做的重要性——不僅是為了理解對信用指標的影響，也包括對溢價（premium）影響的理解。

Thank you. 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.

謝謝。今天電話會議的問答環節到此結束。接下來我想把時間交給Jon Witter先生做結語。

Erica, thank you. Thank you, everyone, who joined this evening. We appreciate your interest in Sallie Mae. Look forward to updating you, again, when we get together in three months for our second-quarter earnings call.

Erica，謝謝你。也謝謝今晚參與的各位。我們感謝大家對Sallie Mae的關注。期待三個月後我們在第二季財報電話會議再度相聚時，再向各位更新。

With that, Melissa, I'll turn it back to you for some closing business.

那麼，Melissa，我把時間交回給你做一些結束事項。

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，Jon。也謝謝各位今天撥冗與提問。本次電話會議的重播與簡報將會在salliemae.com的投資人頁面提供。如有任何進一步問題，歡迎直接與我聯繫。今天的電話會議到此結束。

Thank you. This concludes the Sallie Mae first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call and webcast. Please disconnect your line at this time. Have a wonderful evening.

謝謝。Sallie Mae 2026年第一季財報電話會議與網路直播到此結束。請於此時掛斷您的電話線路。祝各位今晚愉快。