Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $15.75.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen reduced their target price 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. Barclays raised their price objective on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Navient in a research report on Monday, September 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $17.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Navient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st.

Insider Activity at Navient

In related news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 256,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,853,245. The trade was a 3.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 27.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Navient

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NAVI. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Navient during the second quarter valued at about $50,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Navient by 47.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in shares of Navient by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Navient in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Navient during the third quarter worth approximately $95,000. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Navient Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NAVI opened at $15.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59, a current ratio of 9.49 and a quick ratio of 9.49. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.58 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $15.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.20. Navient has a 12 month low of $13.71 and a 12 month high of $19.68.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $1.20. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $150.04 million. Navient had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 8.62%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Navient will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Navient’s payout ratio is presently 92.75%.

Navient Company Profile

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.