Analysts Set Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Price Target at $15.78

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the nine research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $15.78.

NAVI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Navient in a report on Monday, September 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $17.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th.

Navient Stock Performance

Shares of NAVI stock opened at $15.71 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $15.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.46. Navient has a 12 month low of $13.95 and a 12 month high of $19.68. The company has a current ratio of 9.99, a quick ratio of 9.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 1.39.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.27 million. Navient had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 11.06%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Navient will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Navient Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navient

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NAVI. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Navient by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 16,794 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of Navient by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 46,534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Navient by 22.1% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Navient by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in Navient by 2.7% during the third 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 purchasing an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

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.