Brokerages Set Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) PT at $14.58

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $14.58.

NAVI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their target price on Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Navient from $15.00 to $13.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays increased their target price on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st.

Navient Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NAVI opened at $14.26 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $14.31 and its 200-day moving average is $15.01. The stock has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.67 and a beta of 1.43. Navient has a 1-year low of $12.73 and a 1-year high of $18.36. The company has a current ratio of 9.49, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $1.20. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $150.04 million. Navient had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 1.71%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Navient will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Navient’s payout ratio is 92.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Navient

In other news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $150,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 256,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,853,245. This represents a 3.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 27.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navient

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NAVI. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Navient by 1.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 46,534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $678,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its holdings in Navient by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 45,584 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $711,000 after buying an additional 1,218 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Navient by 47.0% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 1,392 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Navient by 11.5% in the second quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 13,944 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 1,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Navient by 24.6% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,360 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,455 shares during the period. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Navient

Navient Corporation provides technology-enabled education finance and business processing solutions for education, health care, and government clients in the United States. It operates through three segments: Federal Education Loans, Consumer Lending, and Business Processing. The company owns Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) loans that are insured or guaranteed by state or not-for-profit agencies; and performs servicing on its portfolios, as well as federal education loans held by other institutions.