ARGA Investment Management LP Sells 50,198 Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI)

ARGA Investment Management LP lessened its position in shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Free Report) by 50.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,972 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 50,198 shares during the quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP's holdings in Navient were worth $763,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. grew its holdings in Navient by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,581,311 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $55,833,000 after acquiring an additional 779,973 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Navient by 12.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 171,160 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Navient by 1.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,092,270 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $17,028,000 after purchasing an additional 19,606 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Navient by 5.4% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 444,467 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $6,929,000 after buying an additional 22,646 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Navient by 0.9% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 322,820 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $4,700,000 after buying an additional 2,991 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.14% of the company's stock.

Navient Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Navient stock traded up $0.26 during trading on Friday, reaching $15.58. The stock had a trading volume of 1,302,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 928,601. The company has a current ratio of 9.49, a quick ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59. The company has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.58 and a beta of 1.39. Navient Co. has a 52 week low of $13.71 and a 52 week high of $19.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $15.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.19.

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

Navient Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NAVI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Navient from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Navient from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Navient in a report on Monday, September 30th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $17.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Navient from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Navient from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Navient has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $15.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 256,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,853,245. This trade represents a 3.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 27.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Navient 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.