Brokerages Set Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI) Price Target at $15.50

Shares of Navient Co. (NASDAQ:NAVI - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.50.

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

Navient Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NAVI traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $13.52. The company had a trading volume of 867,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 809,185. Navient has a 1-year low of $13.19 and a 1-year high of $19.25. The company has a quick ratio of 9.49, a current ratio of 9.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.59. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.15. The stock has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59 and a beta of 1.40.

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

Navient Dividend Announcement

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 4.73%. Navient's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Navient news, EVP Stephen M. Hauber sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $150,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 256,883 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,853,245. This trade represents a 3.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 27.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Navient

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Navient by 102,163.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 85,901 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 85,817 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Navient during the third quarter worth about $1,398,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Navient during the third quarter worth about $511,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Navient in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,327,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in Navient by 59.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 284,130 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,429,000 after acquiring an additional 105,454 shares during the last quarter. 97.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.