JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) Price Target to $15.00

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) had its price target cut by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $15.50 to $15.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target points to a potential upside of 0.94% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Navient in a report on Monday, September 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $17.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their target price on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com raised Navient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Navient has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.63.

Navient Stock Performance

Shares of NAVI opened at $14.86 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.18. The company has a quick ratio of 9.49, a current ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59. Navient has a 52 week low of $13.71 and a 52 week high of $19.68. The stock has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.54 and a beta of 1.40.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $1.20. Navient had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $150.04 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Navient will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Navient

In related news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 256,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,853,245. This trade represents a 3.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 27.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navient

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Navient by 27.8% in the third quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,581,311 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $55,833,000 after acquiring an additional 779,973 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in Navient in the second quarter worth about $3,345,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Navient by 12.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,582,928 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,047,000 after buying an additional 171,160 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Navient during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,327,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Navient by 59.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 284,130 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,429,000 after acquiring an additional 105,454 shares during the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.