Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $136.97 and last traded at $136.9750, with a volume of 25419 shares. The stock had previously closed at $135.44.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Nelnet from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Nelnet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Nelnet in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $135.00.

Nelnet Trading Up 1.4%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $129.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $125.52. The firm has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 28.98, a current ratio of 28.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $1.43. Nelnet had a net margin of 18.96% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The company had revenue of $427.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $372.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Nelnet, Inc. will post 4.52 EPS for the current year.

Nelnet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from Nelnet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Nelnet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Deun Jona M. Van sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.95, for a total transaction of $51,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 704 shares in the company, valued at $90,780.80. The trade was a 36.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 50.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nelnet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NNI. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its stake in shares of Nelnet by 41.5% during the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 14,567 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,826,000 after purchasing an additional 4,269 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Nelnet by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 16,336 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in Nelnet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $557,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nelnet during the third quarter worth approximately $350,000. Finally, Polymer Capital Management HK LTD purchased a new position in shares of Nelnet during the third quarter worth approximately $364,000. 33.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.