LPL Financial LLC Acquires 2,278 Shares of Nelnet, Inc. $NNI

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Nelnet, Inc. by 8.5%, owning 29,122 shares worth approximately $3.23 million after acquiring an additional 2,278 shares in Q1.
• Nelnet recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.30 per share, representing a yield of 0.9%, with the new dividend set to be paid on September 16th.
• The credit services provider reported strong quarterly earnings with an earnings per share of $5.05, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.91, contributing to a revenue of $540.61 million.

LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) by 8.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,122 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,278 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Nelnet worth $3,230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NNI. Sycale Advisors NY LLC increased its position in Nelnet by 26.7% in the fourth quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC now owns 258,038 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,561,000 after purchasing an additional 54,380 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Nelnet by 13,657.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 34,943 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,876,000 after purchasing an additional 34,689 shares during the period. Western Standard LLC acquired a new stake in Nelnet in the fourth quarter worth about $2,614,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its position in Nelnet by 1.5% in the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 1,204,798 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $133,648,000 after purchasing an additional 17,271 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new stake in Nelnet in the fourth quarter worth about $1,441,000. 33.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nelnet Trading Down 1.0%

NNI traded down $1.3040 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $124.7060. 49,844 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 75,263. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $98.15 and a one year high of $130.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 0.90. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $122.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $115.39.

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

Nelnet declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 8th that allows the company to buyback 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Nelnet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a boost from Nelnet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Nelnet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

About Nelnet

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.