Nuveen LLC Invests $4.43 Million in Nelnet, Inc. $NNI

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has made a new investment of approximately $4.43 million in Nelnet, Inc., acquiring nearly 40,000 shares of the company during the first quarter.
• Nelnet's recent quarterly earnings were significantly above expectations, with an EPS of $5.05 compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91, and reported revenue of $540.61 million.
• The company has also announced a dividend increase, raising its quarterly payment from $0.28 to $0.30 per share, reflecting a boost in shareholders' return.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 39,923 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,429,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.11% of Nelnet as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Nelnet by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,535,569 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $170,341,000 after purchasing an additional 187,813 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Nelnet by 1.5% in the 1st 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. Sycale Advisors NY LLC boosted its stake in Nelnet by 26.7% in the 4th 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. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Nelnet by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 54,492 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,820,000 after purchasing an additional 5,778 shares during the period. Finally, Guardian Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Nelnet by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 46,343 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,183 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Nelnet Stock Down 0.4%

NNI stock traded down $0.53 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $128.45. The company had a trading volume of 70,175 shares, compared to its average volume of 72,890. The company has a current ratio of 29.42, a quick ratio of 29.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.27. The company has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.22 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average of $123.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $116.17. Nelnet, Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.15 and a 1 year high of $131.06.

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

Nelnet Increases Dividend

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

Nelnet announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Shelby J. Butterfield sold 41,929 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.25, for a total value of $5,000,033.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 510 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,817.50. This represents a 98.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 50.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.