Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The credit services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07), FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $390.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $382.00 million. Nelnet had a net margin of 18.96% and a return on equity of 12.58%.

Nelnet Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:NNI traded down $1.95 during trading on Friday, reaching $129.37. 93,360 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 101,599. Nelnet has a 12-month low of $98.15 and a 12-month high of $142.87. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $132.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $130.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 28.98 and a current ratio of 28.98. The firm has a market cap of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86 and a beta of 0.82.

Nelnet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Nelnet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nelnet

In other news, Director Deun Jona M. Van sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.95, for a total value of $51,580.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,780.80. The trade was a 36.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 50.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nelnet

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NNI. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new stake in shares of Nelnet in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Nelnet by 170.3% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 373 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nelnet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Nelnet in the 2nd quarter valued at $62,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Nelnet by 137.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 541 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 313 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Nelnet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Zacks Research raised shares of Nelnet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Nelnet in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nelnet currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.00.

Nelnet Company Profile

Nelnet, Inc (NYSE: NNI) is a diversified education services company founded in 1978 and headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. Originally established as the National Education Loan Network by Michael S. Dunlap, the company has grown into a prominent provider of student loan servicing and education finance solutions in the United States.

At the core of Nelnet’s business is student loan servicing, where it administers and manages federal and private education loans on behalf of borrowers and lending partners.