Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) Stock Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Nelnet, Inc. (NYSE:NNI) shares passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $131.88 and traded as high as $135.68. Nelnet shares last traded at $133.90, with a volume of 86,441 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Nelnet from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research lowered shares of Nelnet from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nelnet presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.00.

Nelnet Stock Down 0.3%

The company’s 50-day moving average is $130.46 and its 200 day moving average is $131.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 24.07, a quick ratio of 24.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14.

Nelnet (NYSE:NNI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.66 by ($0.72). Nelnet had a net margin of 18.45% and a return on equity of 11.73%. The company had revenue of $419.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $443.84 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Nelnet, Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

Nelnet Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were given a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Nelnet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.50%.

Institutional Trading of Nelnet

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in shares of Nelnet in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Nelnet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Nelnet by 170.3% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 373 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Nelnet by 51.4% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 445 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nelnet in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.51% of the company’s stock.

About Nelnet

Nelnet, Inc (NYSE: NNI) is a diversified education services company founded in 1978 and headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska. Originally established as the National Education Loan Network by Michael S. Dunlap, the company has grown into a prominent provider of student loan servicing and education finance solutions in the United States.

At the core of Nelnet’s business is student loan servicing, where it administers and manages federal and private education loans on behalf of borrowers and lending partners.