Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 9,768 Shares of Nelnet, Inc. $NNI

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its holdings in Nelnet, Inc. by 0.5%, owning approximately 1.99 million shares worth $220.55 million after selling 9,768 shares in the first quarter.
• Analysts upgraded Nelnet's stock rating from "hold" to "strong-buy", reflecting positive sentiment toward the company's performance and potential.
• Nelnet announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.30 from the previous $0.28, with an upcoming share buyback program to repurchase up to 5 million shares, indicating confidence in its stock value.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its position in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) by 0.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,988,213 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 9,768 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.48% of Nelnet worth $220,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NNI. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Nelnet by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,535,569 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $170,341,000 after acquiring an additional 187,813 shares during the period. Sycale Advisors NY LLC raised its position in shares of Nelnet by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC now owns 258,038 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $27,561,000 after acquiring an additional 54,380 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nelnet in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $4,429,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Nelnet by 13,657.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 34,943 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,876,000 after acquiring an additional 34,689 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in shares of Nelnet by 209.0% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 39,074 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,334,000 after acquiring an additional 26,429 shares during the period. 33.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Nelnet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th.

Nelnet Stock Up 4.4%

NYSE NNI traded up $5.4480 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $130.3180. 72,481 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 73,454. The company has a market capitalization of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 0.90. Nelnet, Inc. has a one year low of $98.15 and a one year high of $130.72. The company's 50-day moving average is $122.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 29.41 and a current ratio of 29.42.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The credit services provider reported $5.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $3.14. The company had revenue of $540.61 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $376.40 million. Nelnet had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 10.09%. On average, analysts forecast that Nelnet, Inc. will post 4.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nelnet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Nelnet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Nelnet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.40%.

Nelnet declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 8th that allows the company to buyback 5,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.