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

by · The Cerbat Gem

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI – Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the eight analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.50.

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Navient from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Navient from $15.50 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America cut their target price on Navient from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Barclays raised their price target on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on NAVI

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Navient by 47.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Navient by 22.1% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Navient during the 3rd quarter worth about $87,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Navient during the 3rd quarter worth about $95,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Navient by 24.6% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.14% of the company’s stock.

Navient Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ NAVI opened at $13.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.26 and a beta of 1.40. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.11. Navient has a 1 year low of $12.77 and a 1 year high of $18.74.

Navient (NASDAQ:NAVI – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $1.20. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Navient will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Navient Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.82%. Navient’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.75%.

Navient Company Profile

(Get Free Report

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.

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