Magnolia Group LLC Sells 847,742 Shares of Nelnet, Inc. $NNI

Key Points

• Magnolia Group cut its Nelnet stake by 66.8%, selling 847,742 shares in the third quarter; it retained 421,981 shares, valued at about $51.9 million.
• Nelnet beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $1.89 and revenue of $436.6 million. It also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.33 to $0.36 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: MarketBeat reports a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $125.

Magnolia Group LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) by 66.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 421,981 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 847,742 shares during the period. Nelnet accounts for 17.8% of Magnolia Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Magnolia Group LLC owned approximately 1.18% of Nelnet worth $51,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Nelnet by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd now owns 15,000 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,846,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in Nelnet by 1.1% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 24,826 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,056,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Nelnet by 424.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 960 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 777 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its position in Nelnet by 3.9% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 7,934 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $999,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Nelnet by 14.8% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,429 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $724,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. 33.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nelnet Price Performance

NNI stock opened at $126.37 on Thursday. Nelnet, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.62 and a 12 month high of $144.38. The company has a current ratio of 25.84, a quick ratio of 15.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $125.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.92. The stock has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.92 and a beta of 0.78.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The credit services provider reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.06. Nelnet had a net margin of 12.93% and a return on equity of 7.15%. The company had revenue of $436.59 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $427.37 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nelnet, Inc. will post 7.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Nelnet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a boost from Nelnet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Nelnet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on NNI shares. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Nelnet from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings downgraded Nelnet from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $125.00.

About Nelnet

Nelnet, Inc. is a diversified financial services and education technology company headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. Founded in 1978, it initially focused on student loan servicing and has since expanded into services for borrowers, schools, and other organizations. The company provides student loan servicing and related technology, as well as education services such as tuition and payment processing, school administration tools, and online learning resources. Its other businesses include banking and renewable energy services.

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