Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday.

Nelnet Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE:NNI opened at $111.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.55 and a beta of 0.91. Nelnet has a 1 year low of $83.75 and a 1 year high of $127.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.78, a current ratio of 31.47 and a quick ratio of 31.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $107.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $110.20.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.36 by ($1.02). Nelnet had a return on equity of 3.78% and a net margin of 5.54%. The company had revenue of $477.80 million during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Nelnet will post 4.52 EPS for the current year.

Nelnet Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. Nelnet’s payout ratio is currently 36.84%.

Insider Activity at Nelnet

In other news, insider William J. Munn sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.89, for a total value of $272,225.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,018,557.06. This represents a 21.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 50.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nelnet

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new stake in Nelnet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nelnet by 1,293.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nelnet by 20.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 556 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA bought a new stake in shares of Nelnet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Nelnet by 34,283.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 2,063 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 2,057 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.51% of the company’s stock.

Nelnet Company Profile

Nelnet, Inc engages in loan servicing, communications, education technology, services, and payment processing businesses worldwide. The Loan Servicing and Systems segment provides loan conversion, application processing, borrower updates, customer service, payment processing, due diligence procedures, funds management reconciliation, and claim processing services.