Willis Investment Counsel Reduces Position in National Research Co. (NASDAQ:NRC)

Willis Investment Counsel lessened its position in shares of National Research Co. (NASDAQ:NRC) by 5.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,633 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,040 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel owned about 0.14% of National Research worth $1,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRC. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Research by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of National Research by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 90,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,776 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of National Research by 52.4% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 9,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 3,250 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Research by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 921,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,541,000 after purchasing an additional 3,053 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of National Research by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 26,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 7,525 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Amandla Mk Trust sold 1,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.04, for a total value of $85,170.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,246,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $191,254,252.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 21,037 shares of company stock valued at $946,968 in the last three months. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

National Research Stock Performance

Shares of NRC stock traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $45.70. The company had a trading volume of 143,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,300. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.70. National Research Co. has a 52-week low of $34.69 and a 52-week high of $47.60. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.06 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

National Research (NASDAQ:NRC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $36.16 million during the quarter. National Research had a return on equity of 39.94% and a net margin of 19.65%.

National Research Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a None dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 18th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 15th. National Research’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.03%.

National Research Profile

National Research Corporation provides analytics and insights that facilitate measurement and enhancement of the patient and employee experience in the United States and Canada. Its portfolio of subscription-based solutions provides actionable information and analysis to healthcare organizations across a range of mission-critical, constituent-related elements, including patient experience, service recovery, care transitions, health risk assessments, employee engagement, reputation management, and brand loyalty.