Western Standard LLC Makes New $2.61 Million Investment in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI)

Western Standard LLC bought a new stake in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 24,471 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,614,000. Nelnet makes up approximately 1.7% of Western Standard LLC's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Western Standard LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Nelnet at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NNI. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Nelnet by 127.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 28,996 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,285,000 after buying an additional 16,245 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Nelnet by 1,293.1% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 404 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Nelnet by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 1,187,527 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $126,840,000 after buying an additional 5,708 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 51.0% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 3,551 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 16,773.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 482,247 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $482,000 after purchasing an additional 479,389 shares during the last quarter. 33.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nelnet Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE NNI traded down $1.65 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $114.05. 79,224 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 58,878. Nelnet, Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.13 and a 1-year high of $127.32. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $109.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $110.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of 37.52 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 31.47 and a current ratio of 31.47.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The credit services provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.47. Nelnet had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 3.78%. The firm had revenue of $398.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $393.00 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Nelnet, Inc. will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nelnet Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Nelnet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.17%.

Nelnet declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 8th that authorizes the company to buyback 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nelnet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th.

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.