Financial conglomerate (NYSE: NNI) reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, and investors are taking notice. Nelnet shares traded up 10% in the final hour of trading Friday following the strong report.

Nelnet is a collection of assets including student and consumer lending, payment processing, banking, as well as an investment portfolio with exposure to a number of different sectors. The company earned $1.81 per share in Q1, easily topping Wall Street's $1.37 per-share estimate and an improvement of 23% year over year. Revenue came in at $385.4 million, topping the $364 million consensus estimate.

The company's business of providing services and payments for the education sector was a particular standout, with net income up more than 25% compared to a year ago.

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Source Fool.com