Nelnet
Services education loans and supplies school administration, payment, and consumer-lending platforms.
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Profile
Provides loan servicing and software, education administration and payment technology, and consumer lending, earning fees, net interest income, and transaction revenue. U.S. and Canadian government servicing contracts anchor volume, while a federally insured student-loan portfolio runs off and Nelnet Bank originates private education and unsecured consumer loans.
Services government-owned and private education loans through Loan Servicing and Systems, including U.S. Department of Education and Canadian government portfolios. Education Technology Services and Payments supplies FACTS school administration, tuition management, campus commerce, and payment processing in the United States and abroad.
Earns servicing and transaction fees, net interest income from the amortizing federally insured student-loan portfolio in Asset Generation and Management, and lending income through Nelnet Bank, a Utah-chartered industrial bank. Technology integrated with institution systems supports high-volume servicing and payment workflows.
Results depend on borrower allocations, pricing, and renewal terms under Department of Education contracts, while the loan book shrinks as borrowers repay. Banking, servicing, payments, and Canadian operations remain subject to federal, state, provincial, privacy, and consumer-finance rules.
Company facts
Key statistics
Year to date −1.3% · Average volume (30d) 126.0K
Analysts
No analyst consensus on record.
Earnings
EPS
Revenue
History
| Report date | EPS est | EPS | Surprise | Revenue est | Revenue | Surprise | Next session |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 6, 2026Q2 FY26 | $2.13 | $1.77 | −16.9% | $419.9M | $410.0M | −2.4% | −2.51% |
| May 7, 2026Q1 FY26 | $2.66 | $1.94 | −27.1% | $443.8M | $419.1M | −5.6% | −13.43% |
| Feb 26, 2026Q4 FY25 | $1.63 | $1.56 | −4.3% | $382.3M | $392.0M | +2.5% | −1.42% |
| Nov 6, 2025Q3 FY25 | $1.52 | $2.95 | +94.1% | $382.0M | $494.6M | +29.5% | +2.22% |
Financial highlights
| 12 quarters | Q1 FY25 | Q2 FY25 | Q3 FY25 | Q4 FY25 | Q1 FY26 | Q2 FY26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $466.1M | $612.8M | $494.6M | $503.9M | $525.5M | $333.6M | |
| Gross profit | $325.6M | $462.0M | $377.5M | $432.2M | $455.1M | $272.1M | |
| Operating income | $106.1M | $237.4M | $136.4M | $194.5M | $207.3M | $25.5M | |
| Net income | $82.6M | $181.5M | $106.7M | $57.8M | $71.1M | $66.7M | |
| Diluted EPS | $2.26 | $4.97 | $2.94 | $1.57 | $1.97 | $1.85 | |
| Gross margin | 69.9% | 75.4% | 76.3% | 85.8% | 86.6% | 81.6% | |
| Operating margin | 22.8% | 38.7% | 27.6% | 38.6% | 39.4% | 7.7% |
Fiscal years (4-quarter sums)FY21 $1.41B · FY22 $1.83B · FY23 $1.84B · FY24 $1.84B · FY25 $2.08B
Revenue by product · Q2 FY26
Balance sheet, Jun 30, 2026Cash & short-term investments $1.56B · Total debt $7.04B · Total assets $14.28B · Shareholders' equity $3.77B
Dividends
Raised for 17 straight years — most recently to $0.33 from $0.30 in Dec 2025. To collect a payout, hold shares through the close before the ex-date.
History
| Ex-date | Record | Paid | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 2026 | Jun 1 | Jun 15 | $0.33 | |
| Feb 27, 2026 | Feb 27 | Mar 13 | $0.33 | |
| Dec 1, 2025 | Dec 1 | Dec 15 | $0.33 | raised from $0.30 |
| Sep 2, 2025 | Sep 2 | Sep 16 | $0.30 | raised from $0.28 |
| Jun 2, 2025 | Jun 2 | Jun 16 | $0.28 | |
| Feb 28, 2025 | Feb 28 | Mar 14 | $0.28 | |
| Dec 2, 2024 | Dec 2 | Dec 16 | $0.28 | |
| Aug 30, 2024 | Aug 30 | Sep 13 | $0.28 |
Ownership
Shares outstanding 35.93M · Float 22.81M · 63.5% free float
Top shareholders13F · 13D/G · Form 4
| Holder | Shares | % outstanding | Form | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitetail Rock Capital Management, LLC | 6.88M | 21.60% | 13G | May 13, 2026 |
| Muhleisen, Angela L. | 4.68M | 18.10% | 13G | Nov 13, 2025 |
| Muhleisen Angie · 10 percent owner | 2.19M | 6.10% | Form 4 | Aug 20, 2025 |
| Union Bank & Trust Co / Trustee | 2.05M | 7.90% | 13G | Nov 13, 2025 |
| Dimensional Fund Advisors LP | 1.85M | 5.15% | 13F | Aug 11, 2026 |
Insider tradesForm 4
| Date | Insider | Role | Shares | Avg price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 9, 2025 | Jona M. van Deun | director | −400 | $128.95 |
| Sep 5, 2025 | Thomas Edward Henning | director | −8,196 | $128.87 |
Peers
- Maximus
Co-servicer running Aidvantage — handles ~$291B in federal student loans.
- Sallie Mae
U.S. private student loan leader; ~55% market share, $7.4B 2025 originations.
- SoFi
Digital bank with ~60–70% share of U.S. student loan refinancing market.
- Navient
Private education lender via Earnest brand; holds legacy FFELP runoff portfolio.
- Blackbaud
Cloud suite for private K-12 schools: SIS, tuition, enrollment, fundraising.
CompareAfter-hours close
| Company | Price | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelnet | $127.37 | +0.08% | $4.58B | 15.3 | 15.3 | 2.5 | −33.6% |
| Maximus | $59.75 | +0.02% | $3.14B | 8.8 | 7.2 | 0.6 | −5.2% |
| Sallie Mae | $26.41 | −0.02% | $4.97B | 7.4 | 8.7 | 1.6 | −41.3% |
| SoFi | $18.08 | +0.22% | $23.17B | 37.6 | 24.5 | 4.1 | +41.0% |
| Navient | $9.47 | +0.16% | $889.1M | — | 11.1 | 0.3 | −81.4% |
| Blackbaud | $48.62 | +0.12% | $2.21B | 15.2 | 8.6 | 1.9 | +3.3% |
| Median | 12.0 | 8.7 | 1.6 | −5.2% |