Nelnet Reports Third Quarter 2022 Results

LINCOLN, Neb., Nov. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Nelnet (NYSE: NNI) today reported GAAP net income of $104.8 million, or $2.80 per share, for the third quarter of 2022, compared with GAAP net income of $53.1 million, or $1.38 per share, for the same period a year ago.

Net income, excluding derivative market value adjustments¹, was $64.5 million, or $1.73 per share, for the third quarter of 2022, compared with $47.6 million, or $1.23 per share, for the same period in 2021.

“During the third quarter, each of our core businesses performed at a high level and delivered strong results,” said Jeff Noordhoek, chief executive officer of Nelnet. “Across Nelnet, our purpose is to serve. While there is a lot of activity and attention on government-owned student loans, our priority is to implement the guidance issued by the Department of Education to the best of our ability and provide our federal student loan customers with exceptional service throughout their loan experience, including debt relief and resumption of payments.”

Nelnet currently operates four primary business segments, earning interest income on loans in its Asset Generation and Management (AGM) and Nelnet Bank segments, and fee-based revenue in its Loan Servicing and Systems and Education Technology, Services, and Payment Processing segments.

Asset Generation and Management

The AGM operating segment reported net interest income of $62.9 million during the third quarter of 2022, compared with $83.1 million for the same period a year ago. The company maintains an overall risk management strategy that incorporates the use of derivative instruments to reduce the economic effect of interest rate volatility. The company recognized income from derivative settlements of $10.3 million during the third quarter of 2022, compared with an expense of $5.9 million for the same period in 2021. Derivative settlements for each applicable period should be evaluated with the company’s net interest income. Net interest income net of derivative settlements decreased to $73.2 million in the third quarter of 2022, compared with $77.2 million for the same period in 2021, due to the expected decrease in the average balance of loans outstanding from $19.1 billion to $15.5 billion, respectively. This decrease was partially offset by an increase in core loan spread.

Core loan spread², which includes the impact of derivative settlements, increased to 1.58 percent for the quarter ended September 30, 2022, compared with 1.42 percent for the same period in 2021. Core loan spread was positively impacted for the three months ended September 30, 2022 by an increase in interest rates during the quarter. In an increasing interest rate environment, student loan spread increases in the short term because of the timing of interest rate resets on the company’s assets occurring daily in contrast to the timing of the interest rate resets on the company’s debt that occurs either monthly or quarterly.

AGM recognized a provision for loan losses in the third quarter of 2022 of $9.2 million ($7.0 million after tax), compared with $5.9 million ($4.5 million after tax) in the third quarter of 2021. In addition, in the third quarter of 2022, AGM recognized $53.0 million ($40.3 million after tax) in income related to changes in the fair value of derivative instruments that do not qualify for hedge accounting, compared with income of $7.3 million ($5.5 million after tax) for the same period in 2021.

Net income after tax for the AGM segment was $85.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022, compared with $45.7 million for the same period in 2021.

Nelnet Bank

As of September 30, 2022, Nelnet Bank had a $429.5 million loan portfolio, consisting of $356.6 million of private education loans and $72.9 million of Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program loans, and had $751.4 million of deposits. Nelnet Bank’s net income after tax for the quarter ended September 30, 2022 was $0.8 million, as compared to $0.6 million for the same period in 2021.

Loan Servicing and Systems

Revenue from the Loan Servicing and Systems segment increased to $134.2 million for the third quarter of 2022, compared with $112.4 million for the same period in 2021, due primarily to an increase in the number of borrowers serviced under the company’s contracts with the Department of Education (Department).

As of September 30, 2022, the company was servicing $590.4 billion in government-owned, FFEL Program, private education, and consumer loans for 17.5 million borrowers, as compared to $513.5 billion in servicing volume for 15.8 million borrowers as of September 30, 2021.

The Loan Servicing and Systems segment reported net income after tax of $16.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022, compared with a net loss of $2.3 million for the same period in 2021. During the third quarter of 2021, the company recognized a $13.2 million ($10.1 million after tax) non-cash impairment charge on certain segment-owned buildings as employees continued to work remotely.

Education Technology, Services, and Payment Processing

For the third quarter of 2022, revenue from the Education Technology, Services, and Payment Processing operating segment was $106.9 million, an increase from $85.3 million for the same period in 2021. Revenue less direct costs to provide services for the third quarter of 2022 was $64.2 million, as compared to $54.0 million for the same period in 2021.

Net income after tax for the Education Technology, Services, and Payment Processing segment was $14.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022, compared with $10.6 million for the same period in 2021. Included in net income for the three months ended September 30, 2022 and 2021 was $3.7 million and $0.3 million of interest income, respectively. The company earns interest income on tuition funds held in custody for schools. The increase in interest income was due to an increase in interest rates in 2022 as compared to 2021.

Share Repurchases

During the nine months ended September 30, 2022, the company repurchased a total of 1,108,170 Class A common shares for $93.2 million ($84.12 per share), including 169,860 shares repurchased during the third quarter of 2022 for $14.3 million ($84.14 per share).

Board of Directors Declares Fourth Quarter Dividend

The Nelnet Board of Directors declared a fourth quarter cash dividend on the company’s outstanding shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock of $0.26 per share. The dividend will be paid on December 15, 2022, to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 1, 2022.

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. The words “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “future,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “scheduled,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions, as well as statements in future tense, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management’s current expectations as of the date of this release and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and other factors that may cause the actual results and performance to be materially different from any future results or performance expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: risks and uncertainties related to the duration, ultimate severity, and continuing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, including changes in the macroeconomic environment and consumer behavior, restrictions on various activities intended to combat the pandemic, and volatility in market conditions resulting from the pandemic; risks related to the ability to successfully maintain and increase allocated volumes of student loans serviced by the company under existing and any future servicing contracts with the Department, which current contracts accounted for 29 percent of the company’s revenue in 2021; risks to the company related to the Biden-Harris Administration’s student debt relief plan announced on August 24, 2022 that may significantly decrease the number of borrowers serviced and revenue earned by the company under such contracts; risks to the company related to the Department’s initiatives to procure new contracts for federal student loan servicing, including the pending and uncertain nature of the Department’s procurement process, risks that the company may not be successful in obtaining any of such potential new contracts, and risks related to the company’s ability to comply with agreements with third-party customers for the servicing of loans; risks related to the company’s loan portfolio, such as interest rate basis and repricing risk and changes in levels of loan repayment or default rates; the use of derivatives to manage exposure to interest rate fluctuations; uncertainties regarding the expected benefits from purchased FFEL Program, private education, and consumer loans, or investment interests therein, and initiatives to purchase additional FFEL Program, private education, and consumer loans; financing and liquidity risks, including risks of changes in the interest rate environment, such as risks from the recent increases in interest rates resulting from inflationary pressures and the transition from LIBOR to an alternative reference rate, and changes in the securitization and other financing markets for loans; risks from changes in the terms of education loans and in the educational credit and services markets resulting from changes in applicable laws, regulations, and government programs and budgets, such as changes resulting from the CARES Act and the expected decline over time in FFEL Program loan interest income due to the discontinuation of new FFEL Program loan originations in 2010, and government initiatives or proposals to consolidate FFEL Program loans to Federal Direct Loan Program loans, otherwise encourage or allow FFEL Program loans to be refinanced with Federal Direct Loan Program loans, and/or create additional loan forgiveness or broad debt cancellation programs; risks and uncertainties of the expected benefits from the November 2020 launch of Nelnet Bank operations, including the ability to successfully conduct banking operations and achieve expected market penetration; risks and uncertainties related to other initiatives to pursue additional strategic investments (and anticipated income therefrom), acquisitions, and other activities, including activities that are intended to diversify the company both within and outside of its historical core education-related businesses; risks from changes in economic conditions and consumer behavior; and cybersecurity risks, including disruptions to systems, disclosure of confidential information, and/or damage to reputation resulting from cyber-breaches.

For more information, see the “Risk Factors” sections and other cautionary discussions of risks and uncertainties included in documents filed or furnished by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the cautionary information about forward-looking statements contained in the company’s supplemental financial information for the third quarter ended September 30, 2022. All forward-looking statements in this release are as of the date of this release. Although the company may voluntarily update or revise its forward-looking statements from time to time to reflect actual results or changes in the company’s expectations, the company disclaims any commitment to do so except as required by law.

Non-GAAP Performance Measures

The company prepares its financial statements and presents its financial results in accordance with U.S. GAAP. However, it also provides additional non-GAAP financial information related to specific items management believes to be important in the evaluation of its operating results and performance. Reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP financial information, and a discussion of why the company believes providing this additional information is useful to investors, is provided in the “Non-GAAP Disclosures” section below.

¹ Net income, excluding derivative market value adjustments, is a non-GAAP measure. See “Non-GAAP Performance Measures” at the end of this press release and the “Non-GAAP Disclosures” section below for explanatory information and reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP financial information.

² Core loan spread and the related net interest income net of derivative settlements are non-GAAP measures. See “Non-GAAP Performance Measures” at the end of this press release and the “Non-GAAP Disclosures” section below for explanatory information and reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP financial information.

Non-GAAP Disclosures

(Dollars in thousands, except share data)

(unaudited)

Non-GAAP financial measures disclosed by management are meant to provide additional information and insight relative to business trends to investors and, in certain cases, to present financial information as measured by rating agencies and other users of financial information. These measures are not in accordance with, or a substitute for, GAAP and may be different from, or inconsistent with, non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. The company reports this non-GAAP information because the company believes that it provides additional information regarding operational and performance indicators that are closely assessed by management. There is no comprehensive, authoritative guidance for the presentation of such non-GAAP information, which is only meant to supplement GAAP results by providing additional information that management utilizes to assess performance.

^(b) The tax effects are calculated by multiplying the realized and unrealized derivative market value adjustments by the applicable statutory income tax rate.

In the third quarter of 2021, the Company redeemed certain asset-backed debt securities prior to their legal maturity, resulting in the recognition of $1.5 million in interest expense from the write-off of all remaining debt issuance costs related to the initial issuance of such bonds. This expense was excluded from the table above.

^(d) Derivative settlements represent the cash paid or received during the current period to settle with derivative instrument counterparties the economic effect of the company’s derivative instruments based on their contractual terms. Derivative accounting requires that net settlements with respect to derivatives that do not qualify for “hedge treatment” under GAAP be recorded in a separate income statement line item below net interest income. The company maintains an overall risk management strategy that incorporates the use of derivative instruments to reduce the economic effect of interest rate volatility. As such, management believes derivative settlements for each applicable period should be evaluated with the company’s net interest income (loan spread) as presented in this table.

^(d)Derivative settlements consist of net settlements received (paid) related to the company’s 1:3 basis swaps.

^(e)Derivative settlements consist of net settlements received (paid) related to the company’s floor income interest rate swaps.