Nuveen Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 40,876 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,045 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.11% of Nelnet worth $4,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NNI. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 127.4% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 1,293.1% in the 4th 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 during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 0.5% in the 4th 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 during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 51.0% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 3,551 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 16,773.6% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 482,247 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $482,000 after buying an additional 479,389 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Nelnet Stock Down 1.9%

NNI stock traded down $2.25 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $113.88. 101,429 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 59,526. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $109.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.46 and a beta of 0.93. Nelnet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $97.13 and a 52-week high of $127.32. The company has a current ratio of 31.47, a quick ratio of 31.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.78.

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

Nelnet Announces Dividend

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

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

Nelnet 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.