Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $111.69, but opened at $117.00. Nelnet shares last traded at $116.07, with a volume of 2,257 shares.

The credit services provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.21. Nelnet had a return on equity of 3.78% and a net margin of 5.54%. The company had revenue of $401.61 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $335.00 million.

Nelnet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Nelnet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Nelnet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 22nd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nelnet

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Nelnet by 20.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 556 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Nelnet by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 17,536 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,987,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Nelnet by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,510 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $909,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC increased its stake in Nelnet by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $258,000 after buying an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Nelnet by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,395 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.51% of the company’s stock.

Nelnet Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 31.47, a current ratio of 31.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.78. The firm has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $109.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.61.

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.