Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI) Shares Purchased by Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) by 1.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,204,798 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 17,271 shares during the period. Nelnet comprises approximately 4.2% of Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. owned approximately 3.32% of Nelnet worth $133,648,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NNI. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,347,756 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $143,954,000 after buying an additional 99,885 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 16,773.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 482,247 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 479,389 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 361,553 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $38,627,000 after buying an additional 1,060 shares in the last quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC now owns 258,038 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,561,000 after buying an additional 54,380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Nelnet by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 201,969 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $21,572,000 after buying an additional 2,778 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.51% of the company's stock.

Nelnet Stock Down 2.4%

NNI stock traded down $2.72 during trading on Friday, reaching $112.39. 52,064 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 59,565. Nelnet, Inc. has a 12 month low of $97.13 and a 12 month high of $127.32. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.49. The company has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.97 and a beta of 0.95. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The credit services provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.47. Nelnet had a return on equity of 3.78% and a net margin of 5.54%. The company had revenue of $398.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $393.00 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Nelnet, Inc. will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nelnet announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 8th that allows the company to repurchase 5,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Nelnet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Nelnet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.