Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $13.00.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on NAVI shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Navient from $13.50 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America reduced their target price on Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. TD Cowen upgraded Navient from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Navient from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navient

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NAVI. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Navient by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 44,052 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after acquiring an additional 823 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in Navient by 12.6% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 14,173 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP grew its stake in Navient by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 12,877 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 1,804 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Navient by 815.0% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 2,176 shares during the period. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in shares of Navient by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 47,774 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 2,190 shares in the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Navient Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NAVI opened at $10.76 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 9.28 and a beta of 1.24. Navient has a 52 week low of $10.53 and a 52 week high of $17.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $13.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a current ratio of 9.48.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.01). Navient had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 6.69%. Analysts predict that Navient will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Navient’s dividend payout ratio is 55.17%.

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.