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Side-by-side financial comparison of KinderCare Learning Companies, Inc. (KLC) and SLM Corp (SLM). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

KinderCare Learning Companies, Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($676.8M vs $560.0M, roughly 1.2× SLM Corp). SLM Corp runs the higher net margin — 55.0% vs 0.7%, a 54.3% gap on every dollar of revenue.

KinderCare Learning Centers, LLC is an American operator of for-profit child care and early childhood education facilities founded in 1969 and currently owned by KinderCare Education based in Portland, Oregon. The company provides educational programs for children from six weeks to 12 years old. KinderCare is the third-largest privately held company headquartered in Oregon. In 39 states and the District of Columbia, some 200,000 children are enrolled in more than 1,250 early childhood educati...

Nikon SLM Solutions AG, headquartered in Lübeck, Germany, is a manufacturer of 3D metal printers listed on the stock market and co-owner of the word mark SLM. The shares of SLM Solutions Group AG have been listed in Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since May 9, 2014.

KLC vs SLM — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
KLC
KLC
1.2× larger
KLC
$676.8M
$560.0M
SLM
Higher net margin
SLM
SLM
54.3% more per $
SLM
55.0%
0.7%
KLC

Income Statement — Q3 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Revenue
$676.8M
$560.0M
Net Profit
$4.5M
$308.0M
Gross Margin
Operating Margin
3.9%
69.6%
Net Margin
0.7%
55.0%
Revenue YoY
0.8%
Net Profit YoY
-67.4%
1.0%
EPS (diluted)
$0.04
$1.54

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$560.0M
Q4 25
$377.1M
Q3 25
$676.8M
$373.0M
Q2 25
$700.1M
$376.8M
Q1 25
$668.2M
$375.0M
Q4 24
$647.0M
$362.2M
Q3 24
$671.5M
$359.4M
Q2 24
$372.2M
Net Profit
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$308.0M
Q4 25
$233.2M
Q3 25
$4.5M
$135.8M
Q2 25
$38.6M
$71.3M
Q1 25
$21.2M
$304.5M
Q4 24
$-133.6M
$111.6M
Q3 24
$14.0M
$-45.2M
Q2 24
$252.0M
Operating Margin
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
69.6%
Q4 25
83.8%
Q3 25
3.9%
49.8%
Q2 25
9.8%
23.3%
Q1 25
7.3%
Q4 24
-13.8%
36.5%
Q3 24
8.1%
-16.6%
Q2 24
91.0%
Net Margin
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
55.0%
Q4 25
61.8%
Q3 25
0.7%
36.4%
Q2 25
5.5%
18.9%
Q1 25
3.2%
81.2%
Q4 24
-20.6%
30.8%
Q3 24
2.1%
-12.6%
Q2 24
67.7%
EPS (diluted)
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$1.54
Q4 25
$1.11
Q3 25
$0.04
$0.63
Q2 25
$0.33
$0.32
Q1 25
$0.18
$1.40
Q4 24
$-1.17
$0.53
Q3 24
$0.15
$-0.23
Q2 24
$1.11

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$174.7M
$5.2B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$930.9M
$6.2B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$931.2M
$2.4B
Total Assets
$3.9B
$29.4B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
1.00×
2.53×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$5.2B
Q4 25
$4.2B
Q3 25
$174.7M
$3.5B
Q2 25
$119.0M
$4.1B
Q1 25
$131.3M
$3.7B
Q4 24
$62.3M
$4.7B
Q3 24
$137.2M
$4.5B
Q2 24
$5.3B
Total Debt
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$6.2B
Q4 25
$5.4B
Q3 25
$930.9M
$6.8B
Q2 25
$926.5M
$6.4B
Q1 25
$927.4M
$6.1B
Q4 24
$926.0M
$6.4B
Q3 24
$1.5B
$6.0B
Q2 24
$5.4B
Stockholders' Equity
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$2.4B
Q4 25
$2.5B
Q3 25
$931.2M
$2.3B
Q2 25
$924.3M
$2.4B
Q1 25
$884.9M
$2.4B
Q4 24
$864.5M
$2.2B
Q3 24
$235.6M
$2.1B
Q2 24
$2.3B
Total Assets
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
$29.4B
Q4 25
$29.7B
Q3 25
$3.9B
$29.6B
Q2 25
$3.8B
$29.6B
Q1 25
$3.7B
$28.9B
Q4 24
$3.6B
$30.1B
Q3 24
$3.7B
$30.0B
Q2 24
$28.8B
Debt / Equity
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
2.53×
Q4 25
2.19×
Q3 25
1.00×
2.92×
Q2 25
1.00×
2.70×
Q1 25
1.05×
2.56×
Q4 24
1.07×
2.98×
Q3 24
6.42×
2.83×
Q2 24
2.37×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$100.8M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$62.6M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
9.2%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
5.6%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
22.15×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
Q4 25
$-64.5M
Q3 25
$100.8M
$-49.3M
Q2 25
$35.0M
$-138.7M
Q1 25
$98.4M
$-146.1M
Q4 24
$4.5M
Q3 24
$-113.4M
Q2 24
$-143.8M
Free Cash Flow
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
Q4 25
Q3 25
$62.6M
Q2 25
$671.0K
Q1 25
$75.1M
Q4 24
Q3 24
Q2 24
FCF Margin
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
Q4 25
Q3 25
9.2%
Q2 25
0.1%
Q1 25
11.2%
Q4 24
Q3 24
Q2 24
Capex Intensity
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
Q4 25
Q3 25
5.6%
Q2 25
4.9%
Q1 25
3.5%
Q4 24
Q3 24
Q2 24
Cash Conversion
KLC
KLC
SLM
SLM
Q1 26
Q4 25
-0.28×
Q3 25
22.15×
-0.36×
Q2 25
0.91×
-1.95×
Q1 25
4.65×
-0.48×
Q4 24
0.04×
Q3 24
Q2 24
-0.57×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

KLC
KLC

Early Childhood Education Centers$627.0M93%
Before And After School Sites$49.8M7%

SLM
SLM

Net Interest Income$375.0M67%
Noninterest Income$185.0M33%

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